A Bird Leaves Her Cage
by Crazyaniknowit
Summary: Zoë Titania was born into a wealthy family, and at the age of 17, she is engaged to marry someone she doesn't know. In defiance of her unwanted fate, she runs away, and through unpredictable circumstances, finds herself joining a band of mercenaries along the way. Mercenaries whose names are Farlan, Isabel, and Levi. Levihan. Farisabel. AU. Rated M for sexual content and violence.
1. Chapter 1

**I've been working on this story since the start of the year, and I'm glad of it. It gave me plenty of time to develop the plot in my head and refine/write the first few chapters.**

 **Anywho, the story is set in the same time and place as the show, but in an alternate universe where Titans don't exist.**

 **Pairings are Farlan x Isabel and Levi x Hanji and slight Eren x Mikasa implications.**

 **I'll post chapter 2 in a few days after I go through it one last time.**

 **Enjoy!**

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The sharp click of heels on a marble floor echoed hollowly through the cold castle, and one could assume the owner of said heels was quite possibly irritated. That would be an understatement, Zoë Titania wasn't just irritated, she was furious! Her veins were pulsing with adrenaline, causing her skin to quiver. She had just come from a banquet her father threw.

All the lords her father befriended were - for lack of a better word - jackasses. Being the only lady at the table did not help Zoë's case in the slightest. She shan't have minded being invited to this dinner, were it not for the fact that various disrespectful words, lecherous leers, and even a few gropes had been directed at her from his near-drunk coworkers.

Having had enough, she excused herself and left early. Claiming to be tired. She would later reflect and decide that her discomfort was proving to be a boon, however. After all, tonight was the night her plan went into action.

Opening the double doors to her room, she closed them gently, so as not to alert anyone of her mood. Zoë locked it before turning to face her room, and in that moment, her irritation and anger faded. There were so many fine memories in this room. Memories of a mother, of a family. Of a time when the world was sweet and kind. A world that was no more.

With a sad smile, she skimmed her fingers over the wood of her writing desk, then along the pale blue walls. She made her way to her bed, caressing the sheets and sitting down on them one last time. This would be her last day here, she wasn't even going to spend a final night in this bed. She had determined it nearly a month before, the exact time she had acquired the reason for her escape plan.

As a child, Zoë never knew her father very well, he was never home, and when he was, he hardly spoke to her. She had come to see him as a silent, intimidating figure who lurked in his office or stayed hidden behind a book at dinner. Her mother, having died when Zoë was merely five, was not there to comfort her when she was lonely. She resorted to rag-dolls when she was younger, giving them names and throwing private tea parties in the garden for them.

Maggie, her nursemaid from birth, had also recently passed on, and she was yet to be assigned a new handmaiden. However, that didn't matter anymore. Not now that she was leaving. As for why she had decided to take her leave: her father initiated contact with her for the first time she could remember almost a month ago.

•

"Enter."

Zoë nearly jumped at the sound of his voice, even though she had been expecting it. Her father was never one to talk to her, silence was all she ever really heard from him. Nonetheless, she steeled herself and pulled the handle, slipping inside before the heavy door could close again.

She smoothed her green, gossamer skirt down and bowed her head respectfully, despite her father's head being turned.

"Come and sit, Zoë."

She gulped, in honesty she was extremely nervous, her father had always been scary. But she quickly covered up her fear with a soft nod and a graceful walk to the chair beside his desk. She lowered herself onto the plush seat and lay her hands in her lap, awaiting further instructions.

"I have something to tell you." her father turned, finally, and moved to stand beside his desk, just before her feet. She blinked in confusion when he kneeled and covered her hands with his own. "Zoë, you'll be eighteen soon."

"I know, papa." she smiled briefly, a soft giggle accompanying her words. Of course she would know when her birthday was! A little over a month from now. Her father was just as silly as she remembered...from the few times he did talk to her, that is.

"As such-" her father continued, "-I have arranged...Zoë, an old friend of mine..." he stood with a sigh.

"Yes?" she prodded, her curiosity growing by the minute.

"Well, our houses are both reaching that point where we need a union to keep the family running. And as you'll be of age..." her father continued, clearing his throat. And suddenly she knew what he was going to say,

"Papa-"

"I've arranged for you to marry his son."

The chair screeched loudly as she stood, her chest heaving with all the words she wished she could scream at him. However - instead of speaking - she bit her tongue to keep all the obscenities back. She bit down so hard that the sharp tang of copper filled her senses, but she ignored it. He hadn't turned to face her, yet she didn't drop her composure even for a second. Save her shuddering breath and shaking limbs.

"When?" her voice quivered with the force of her restraint.

He shifted, still not looking at her, "Your birthday. That's when he'll arrive."

She drew herself up to her full height, "I see, I understand."

No. She didn't see, she didn't understand. But then again, her father had never been attached to her in the slightest...

"It will be good for the family, and for you. You'll live comfortably at their manor, the houses will benefit on either side-"

She mentally blocked him out, nodding when he turned briefly to her for her agreement. She was seething on the inside. Seething over the fact that she was being traded like cattle. And for what? More wealth? When they already had more than they would ever need?

She could not believe what she was hearing. She didn't want to believe it. She would rather be a poor, shivering beggar in the streets than be forced into a union. Forced to be a smiling, happy little lady during the day, and forced to submit to a husband she wouldn't even know at night. No. She wouldn't live like that. All the jewels and fancy dresses in the world were not worth living in a cage. She wasn't going to stay. She would rather be a poor beggar indeed...

•

Now, facing her final day in her bedroom, Zoë gave a sigh and stood, ripping the golden dress she wore from her chest without a care for the expensive fabric. Tearing the cloth was harder than she had anticipated, and the effort strained painfully at her fingers and arms. A gasp erupted from her lips, and she tugged the rest of the dress from her arms with less conviction. "Damn..." she cursed and blushed, wincing as the word echoed off the walls of her room.

She wasn't allowed to curse. Exposure to such vulgar words was highly prohibited, but the library didn't conceal the properties of the commonfolk's tongue. As such, the occasional word slipped out, and it was terribly embarrassing. Despite the fact that she never had company when it happened.

Nonetheless, she bared herself of every thread and moved to her wardrobe, digging diligently to find her quarry. She pulled a burlap bag from the recesses of the closet and took her new clothing out of it, an outfit that had taken a week to accumulate. Some of the servants might miss them, but that was none of her concern right now. She couldn't afford to care about that when her freedom was on the line. She pulled on the pants, albeit a little unfamiliar with the sensation of them. She shifted around, wishing she knew whether or not there were undergarments in peasant clothing.

Undergarments would do her a lot of good right now.

She looked at her torn corset on the ground, and realizing she didn't know whether or not peasant women wore expensive, silken corsets, she turned to the mirror with a frown. Well, she wasn't exactly big...in fact she was small, keeping herself concealed wouldn't be too hard, she supposed.

With a shrug, she took the leather vest she had acquired and buttoned it over the shirt, followed by a simple jacket. She had also acquired a plain, brown cloak with a hood, and affixed it around her neck. In the bottom of the bag she had a small blanket, should she need it, and some of her expensive, one-of-a-kind jewelry to trade for coin and such.

"I suppose that's all I need." she mumbled to herself.

Zoë pulled the hood over her head and shrugged the sack onto her shoulder, giving the room one last look before she left through the servant's entrance. She moved with practiced ease, having grown up galavanting through these very halls. It was a shame she had to leave her home to attain freedom, she mused. But then again, as she had surmised many times during planning the first stages of her escape plan: it wasn't much of a home to begin with.

Making her way out unnoticed was surprisingly easy, as her father and his companions were still at it with the dinner party, and properly smashed, most likely. Zoë made it to the stable, finding the saddlebags she had prepared earlier that very day. She had packed a bedroll to go with the blanket, and some food, along with a few small knives. And her sword - with which she had some, limited skill - was already attached to her saddle.

She couldn't take Therese, her horse since she was but a little girl. She was a prized mare after all, known far and wide with the noblemen. The mare could inadvertently get her caught early on. But at least - with her fame - Zoë knew Therese would be well looked after. So in place of the mare, she opted for a brown gelding, whose status was that of a simple riding horse. Saddling him up, she gave him an apple and handful of oats to keep him quiet.

"Hush, boy." she murmured, affixing the bridle carefully upon his head, "I need you to be quiet for me, okay?" She stuck her hand between his cheek and the bridle to be sure it wasn't too tight, then checked the saddle girth the same way before she attached the saddlebags to the horn of his saddle. "Good boy." she whispered.

After checking his hooves, she led him out of the stable, towards the path that led away from her father's estate. Zoë went on foot for the majority of her initial escape, wanting to save her horse's energy for the first long gallop of her life. If her plan was to work, she needed to be as far away as possible by daybreak. She didn't lead her horse on the path, but rather on the grass, to avoid telling how long she had been gone.

The knowledge one accumulated while reading novels was astounding. If she weren't an avid reader her entire life, she might not have been clever enough for the elaborate details of this escape. She felt awfully pleased with herself to be honest.

She had been walking for twenty minutes before she turned to look back once more. The estate looked small now, sitting on a field far off in the distance, and she gave a sigh of relief at having gotten away clean. Zoë mounted the steed, whom she had named Chance in the minutes she walked. She supposed she named him that because he was her only chance of escape, and he was her only chance of hope. "Come along, boy." she whispered, clicking the heels of her boots into his flanks.

The brown steed nickered at her touch and began to canter, loping at a gentle, yet swift pace. Zoë made herself comfortable in the saddle and moved with his gait, clutching the reins nervously. She felt that she may be overrun by a stampede of horses at any time, men clambering to drag her back to her life. It was paranoid, she knew, but it didn't help her feel better. Her heart only momentarily stopped clenching out of fear when she saw that the sun was coming over the distant mountains. And when she looked over her shoulder she could see that she had put a few miles of distance between her and her old home.

' _I'm free...'_ her mind finally registered, and a grin broke upon her lovely features. It made her want to dance with joy, and she pressed her steed into a victorious gallop. There was only the path ahead now, her destiny was her own.

•

•

Owning your destiny was hard.

Zoë nearly fell out of the saddle, having ridden Chance since midnight, and it was taking its toll. Her legs were cramped, she could feel the bags developing under her eyes from lack of sleep, and her fingers felt like they might fall off, she'd been holding the reins so long.

It was sunset now, and she had broken from the main path an hour before, cantering down a road to the nearest, isolated town she could find on her map. She was staying at an inn: The Bubbling Barrel. She tied Chance to the post in the stable, taking the saddlebags with her, and giving him a soft parting pat on the muzzle. "Be good." she said.

Despite the fact that no one turned her way, she felt as though all eyes were on her when she opened the rickety wooden door to the inn. She gulped, tugging her hood closer. She didn't dare take her hood off in company just yet. She had realized on her journey that her description alone may give her away. She, embarrassingly, forgot about that major detail. And she had also forgotten about her most recognizable feature. One of her most endearing characteristics was that of her long, thick, auburn hair.

She approached the bar, clearing her throat and pulling a few silver coins from her pocket. "I need a room?" she cringed inwardly at how the phrase came out as a question.

The barmaid, whose dress was flattering in all the right ways, and accentuated her heavily exposed body far too well, turned to her with a practiced smile. It made Zoë more self-conscious just being around her. "Aye, one night?"

"Uh, yeah." Zoë smiled awkwardly from under her hood, trying and failing to feel natural in this habitat.

"Alright, that'll be two silver please." the barmaid held out her hand across the counter.

"Alright." she exhaled as she handed over two of the three silver she had produced.

"Here's your key, room number on the parchment, return it in the mornin'." the woman said, her words heavily accented in a way that Zoë was used to hearing from her nursemaid, back when she was alive. It was a northern accent, and unique to the peasantfolk, apparently.

"Thank you." Zoë took the large, silver key and shrugged her heavy saddlebags over her shoulder to join her sack. She climbed the stairs, reaching the top floor and hesitantly moving down the hall. One or two of the rooms she passed obviously had occupants, and she blushed heavily, increasing her pace as she realized what was happening in those rooms.

"Number seven." she sighed in relief, fumbling with the key until it slid into the keyhole and the door clicked open. She slammed it shut behind her, and then smacked herself with her palm. "Keep it together!" she hissed. After all, it was life, and in common livelihoods, it was not at all uncommon to shag a great many people throughout your life. If you were the type who had to stay at inns most nights, that is.

She tossed her hood onto the bed and pulled the pins from her hair. It cascaded over her shoulders in graceful locks, ending just below her waist. Zoë paused and caressed her hair sorrowfully, the sentimental value of it coming to bite her in the butt. She loved her hair, it looked exactly like her mother's: long, thick, shiny, and wavy reddish locks. Yet, after careful consideration, she knew it would only cause her trouble in the long run. So she rummaged through the bag she had brought and pulled out one of the small knives.

She gripped her hair behind her head tightly and put the knife to it, letting out a small whimper when the first of the hairs began to part between her grasp. She hadn't had her hair cut in a very a long time, and as a result the sensation was otherworldly. After the knife had no more hair to slice through, she pulled it down and placed it on the dresser, holding her newly chopped-away locks in her hand. She contemplated selling it to a wig-maker, but in the end decided _that_ in itself could be traced back to her. So she turned to look at the fireplace and felt another lump build in her throat. God, her mother would hate her for this.

With deep regrets and a heavy heart, Zoë tossed the hair into the fire and watched the last remaining piece of her old life burn away. The smell was a bit disturbing, but she simply wrinkled her nose and sighed. She turned to look in the mirror afterwards. Her new, raggedly cut locks barely made it to her shoulders, so she adjusted some of her hair into bangs with the knife. And then she pulled the rest into a messy bundle, barely worthy of being called a ponytail. She scrutinized herself in the mirror, and washed away any rouge or kohl she had forgotten to remove before she left.

The Zoë Titania she saw before her was a whole new person, and she was determined to keep it that way. Her face was no longer perfect and decorated, her hair looked like a rat's nest already, and her clothing looked simple, dirty, unrecognizable. And she was satisfied with it. No one should know who she was now.

With a yawn and a stretch, she pulled her hood, jacket, boots, and vest away, getting into bed. She closed her eyes with a new sense of lightness on her shoulders, the burden of everything she was now gone forever. She could rest in peace, and she did, with a smile on her face, she slipped into the world of dreams, content with her decisions.

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Zoë awoke in the morning with a start, her muscles stiff and protesting when she moved. She sat up with a groan and rubbed at her lower back, attempting to ease the soreness. All that riding was most certainly taking its toll. She blinked when she realized her surroundings and paused, remembering her previous adventure. Another smile out of many since the night before split her face when she thought about how easy it was to slip away. She stood and walked towards the nightstand, splashing the cold water on her face to awaken fully.

After she dried her face she redressed, shrugging all of her clothes back on with a sigh. Despite how saddlesore she was, Zoë knew she needed to get back on the road. She walked to the door with her bag and key in hand, but the loud rumbling of her angry stomach halted her. When confronted with the thought, she realized she hadn't eaten in nearly two days!

Zoë opened the door and closed it behind her, locking it out of courtesy and heading downstairs, lugging her bag and saddlebags with her. "Good mornin' Miss!" the innkeeper exclaimed when she approached the breakfast stand.

Slightly startled, Zoë remembered her hood too late, and her hand came to a near-audible halt in its attempt to mend that mistake. Instead she opted to ruffle her own hair and give a sheepish smile, "G-good morning, sir." she replied politely.

"Not from around here are ye?" the jolly old man asked, polishing a wooden beer mug, "Not with that accent."

Zoë bit her lip, making a mental note to try and adopt the common accents of the areas she passed through, "No, not really, I'm just...passing through." she waved a hand nonchalantly.

The innkeeper nodded in understanding, "Where to, lass?"

Zoë blinked, she honestly had no idea, where had she even been planning to go after she left? Was her plan already so half-baked? "I-I am just, going wherever, I don't really have a destination." she admitted with an inward cringe at her own incompetence. Really, simply running away with no plan as to what to do after she actually managed to escape...

She was starting to doubt her own intelligence.

The old man smiled warmly, "Ahh, bonnie young lass like you, off chasin' the wind of adventure, eh? I tell ya, if it weren't for my age, I'd prolly jump right over this stand, pack me bags and join ye!" he jested, giving a hearty chuckle.

Zoë found herself hesitantly chuckling along with him, she rather liked this jolly man, perhaps she should come back someday? "I just need some breakfast before I go." she prodded, pulling the third silver coin from the night before from her pocket.

The innkeeper waved the coin away, "No need for extra pay, miss. The night's stay comes with a breakfast, ye can tip the barmaid if ya like though." he explained.

Zoë smiled, "Alright, thank you kindly, sir." she turned from the stand and made her way to the nearest table. She barely sat upon the chair when a plate of steaming eggs and roll of fresh bread was placed before her, along with a mug of what she assumed was water. She looked up at the barmaid - a far different woman than the girl from the night before -and thanked her with a smile. She offered her the coin, of which the silvery-haired woman took with gratitude.

Zoë graciously dug into her food, glad for the simplicity of it. Her usual, elaborate breakfasts may not only have been bad for her physical health, but also for her ravenously hungry stomach. The simple meal went down smoothly, and her stomach soon quieted in contentment. She stayed a few more minutes, washing it down with the water.

After a time, she stood and made her way out, hefting her sack over her shoulder and waving goodbye to the friendly innkeeper. She saddled Chance quickly, making sure her saddlebags and sword were buckled correctly. When she was certain she was ready, she mounted him and dug her heels in, sending him into a canter yet again. Today she could go a little slower. There was no need to rush now, so she didn't push her steed. Now, for whatever adventure lay in store, she knew she wasn't fully prepared, but she wasn't going to let that stop her.

She was never going back.

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 **A.N. Reviews are much appreciated**


	2. Chapter 2

**Zoë meets the trio!**

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Zoë opened her eyes hesitantly, taking in her surroundings. She was in a meadow, Chance was tied to a tree nearby, and still sleeping by the look of it. She had been riding for nearly two weeks now, stopping at various villages for rest and supplies. Now, according to her map, she was on the outskirts of her small country, and nearing the border into the next. From what her map showed, she had ridden from her home in Macedonia to the Servian c

ountries. Not that it took very long, her country was rather small after all.

With a long, satisfying stretch, she stood and pulled her jacket on. Having grown used to sleeping in her clothes, she only took her jacket off at night, as it was late summer, and too hot to wear it to bed. She pat Chance on the shoulder and gently woke him, stroking his mane and cooing quietly. The steed nickered and nudged her, with a laugh, she nudged him back. "I know you're tired, boy, but we still have a long ways to go." she said, giving him an apple.

The horse snorted and accepted his treat, munching away while Zoë made her own breakfast. While she hadn't been a part of this life long, she felt as if it were her true calling. Every day she spent simply riding to some unknown horizon was better than the last. Riding was also getting easier, as her body was slowly becoming used to its function during the act.

She didn't usually have much to eat if she hadn't stayed at an inn the night before. As such, her breakfast only consisted of an apple and a couple rolls of bread. She had no real time for cooking meat, due to her paranoia that she might be being followed, so she hadn't hunted any animals either.

She pulled apart her bread, popping the torn pieces into her mouth and leaning against the tree she slept under with a contended sigh. "Few more days of travel, Chance." she said, "Then we'll be out of the country." she smiled softly, she had taken to talking to Chance whenever she was thinking. He was her only friend, after all, and he listened too. At least it seemed like he did, anyway.

"Alright, come on boy." she stood and brushed the crumbs from her shirt. She repacked her bedroll and hoisted her sack back onto its customary place slung over her shoulders before she swung herself up into the saddle.

She got started early, just after sunrise, and continued to walk east down the road, as she usually did. It was a gorgeous day, the sun highlighted the lingering dew from the previous night's fog. And the sky was painted in a lovely, fading, purple hue that extended towards the western horizon. Zoë could feel that this was going to be a good day, and, according to her map, she should come upon the next village by sunset.

As far as she could tell, the roads she traveled upon were mostly unused, which - in a manner of speaking - was good. A less popular road made for a lesser chance of burglary, as thieves would likely only target a road that was sure to have travelers. Yet Zoë was still cautious, and better cautionary than dead, is what she reasoned.

The sun climbed swiftly in the sky, soon beaming down unforgivingly on her and her steed. Zoë pondered over the fact that summer may be ending in less than a couple months. If that was so, she hoped to find a place to settle in Servia before winter. Traveling wasn't an option during the winter months. And, if she was far enough away, Zoë hoped such a long hiatus from her run wouldn't enable her father to catch up to her. If he was even looking. During the first few days of her ride, she doubted that he would, but realizing that she had cost him a fortune by running sent waves of fear coursing down her spine.

She still wasn't sure whether or not she got away cleanly. She could be being tracked, or not, there was really no way to know. She was no expert, but she did her best not to leave any traces of her intentions or the direction in which she headed. There was no telling whether or not her skill was sufficient.

Zoë continued her train of thought, and were she more aware of her surroundings, the following may not have happened. Chance suddenly jolted backwards and reared, whinnying loudly and nearly making her slip from her perch on his back. She managed to sight the source of his distress. A long, green, harmless grass snake had been slithering along the path.

Her brief view of the snake was all she was afforded before the gelding broke into a frantic gallop. And the sudden thrust of his neck pulled the reins from her hands. "Chance!" she shrieked in terrified admonition, clutching at his neck with all her might. She buried her face in his mane and cried out every time she nearly lost her grip.

The horse didn't slow, and when the whisking sound of trees began to fill her ears she realized he had broken from the path. "No wait!" she yelled, reaching out to grab the reins as they flew towards her. She leant back to tug on the bridle as much as she could. The horse was too spooked to listen, however, and refused to slow.

Zoë gave a loud growl of frustration and tugged on the reins harder. The next thing she knew, her forehead exploded in pain, and her back hit the ground seconds later. A snap registered in her brain, but at the moment she was too discombobulated to decipher what it was.

Chance's hoofbeats sounded in her ears for a time, but slowly faded as the seconds went by. She stared up at the canopy of trees, uncertain of what she should do. She had never anticipated she might lose Chance, let alone be tossed against a tree in the middle of the forest. Her body ached terribly, especially in her forehead and arm, and she grimaced as she attempted to move.

 _'I need to get up.'_ she told herself, grunting as she shifted and tensed her muscles. "Aghh!" she cried out as she put pressure on her left arm. She hissed and gasped, barely breathing as tears pricked the corners of her eyes, willing the pain to ease even just a little. It had to be broken, somewhere next to the wrist, from what she could gather. She'd never broken anything before, and as she shakily clutched the wounded limb to her chest, she realized through the pain that she would need a doctor.

The arm throbbed ten times more violently than her head now that she had touched and moved it so much. The pain had her eyes moist and her throat tightening. She gasped and sniffled as she gently rocked herself back and forth to cope, holding the limb as still as she possibly could. It helped just a bit, and the pain very gradually faded until it was at a more tolerable level. Now was the time to move, she decided.

She struggled to stand with both arms occupied, but she managed. At this point, Zoë was simply glad she had worn the straps of her bag around her shoulders and not tied it to the saddle like the saddlebags. For one, it cushioned her fall and preventing further injury on her back. Secondly, tracking down Chance could take hours, and she had at least a couple bread rolls in her bag, so she wouldn't starve. But she had no sleeping bag, and her only weapons were the tiny knives, not even worthy of being called daggers. Her sword was in Chance's saddle sheath.

"Keep it together, Zoë. Keep it together..." she told herself, looking around, then another horrid thought struck her. "Oh God, which way were we running?" she spun around in circles, trying to pinpoint something familiar. The only landmark was the indent of her landing, and she wasn't certain if she had fallen from the left or the right side of Chance's back, or even straight off over his rump...

The leaves were also scattered everywhere, so she couldn't find any hoofprints to guide herself.

She looked up to determine the sun's position in the sky, a useful habit she had picked up over the past week. They had been riding on a westward path, so she tried to determine the direction Chance had initially run from the path. The forest was to the north of the path, so she figured that he had gone north. "He must be to this way..." she decided, turning in what (she hoped) was the correct direction.

Each step was painful, as there was a subtle burn in the skin just below the back of her knee. She supposed she had also pulled a muscle in her right calf during the fall. And her broken arm jarred with each step, sending searing pain pulsing through her nerves to her already dizzy brain. Zoë hissed through her teeth, and despite having walked a mere few meters she stopped to take a breath.

At this rate, it would be midnight before she found Chance. But she couldn't give up, despite her pain, it wasn't worth getting lost in the woods if she stopped. So she took another step, and forced herself to take another. She _wasn't_ giving up, one way or another, she'd find some escape from this mess.

•

•

Zoë panted heavily, dust, leaves, and various forest debris were entangled in her hair, and dry tear streaks had crusted on her face. She hadn't cried out of despair or anything of the like, but rather from the renewed throbbing in her arm. Over time, the dull pain had increased with each step she took, until the ache was mind-numbing. By that point she didn't care anymore, and moved without a second thought to her injuries. And over said time her forearm had swelled and the skin mottled with purple.

She checked the sun, noting that it was nearly twilight, and she needed to make a camp before that happened. Or at least as much of a camp as she could muster. Zoë came to a stop and shrugged off her bag, gasping as it caught on her useless arm and tugged painfully. Without her sleeping bag, she had no choice but to use the forest floor. She flimsily placed her hood down and dug into her bag to pull out the clothing inside. She laid it out as a makeshift cushion and placed her bag on the end of the piled clothing as a pillow.

She wouldn't be able to build a fire, not without both hands, so she resolved to hope that the night wouldn't get chilly...

Zoë groaned as she lay down, carefully positioning her broken arm on the ground. Sleep came surprisingly quickly. She barely had enough time to ponder whether or not falling asleep was a good idea before darkness crept into her vision and dragged her into a feverish slumber.

•

•

Zoë gasped and sat up, or at least attempted to. Feeling far too weak, she flopped back down before she could even begin to move. ' _Where am I?_ ' she asked herself in her head, clearly remembering having fallen asleep under a gnarly tree. Now she was staring at the roof of a tent, laying on a cushy sleeping bag, arm in a wooden splint and linen sling, along with a cloth draped over her forehead.

She exhaled shakily and looked around, blinking her eyes to adjust to the light of a dim lantern. It was a moderate tent, big enough for someone to stand, and wide enough for three sleeping bags. But besides herself, another large sleeping bag, and her makeshift satchel, (which sat in a corner) there was not much to see. That is until the tent flap opened and a young woman walked inside. She seemed to be just a couple years older than Zoë, her vibrant, luscious burgundy red hair was pulled into a lovely braid that cascaded down her left shoulder. Her eyes were a bright, jade-green, and she wore a form-fitting, brown leather outfit.

The woman jumped in surprise when she realized Zoë was awake, but she quickly regained her composure, breaking into a warm, comforting smile as she approached, "Thank goodness! We were wondering if you'd ever wake up." she exclaimed, kneeling beside the injured girl's head. She checked the bandaging on her head, and Zoë flinched as her fingers grazed the bump on her head. The woman changed the warmed cloth draped over her forehead for a cooler one, and readjusted Zoë's splinted arm.

"Who..." Zoë began, but she promptly coughed when she attempted to speak. Her voice was rather hoarse, as her was throat dry and crackly. She cleared it a good few times before she could even begin to try again, but the young woman waited patiently with a kind smile. "Who are you?" she attempted again, the words burning against her throat.

"My name is Isabel. My brother and my husband found your horse a few days back. And after they did a little searchin', they found you too! You had a raging fever, and let me just say, we thought you might die during the night." the woman explained, moving to examine her sprained calf. "That was nearly a week ago, the fever's gotten better, but it still hasn't broken."

Zoë gulped, her first little adventure - if one could call it that - also nearly killed her. She was honestly starting to doubt her survival capabilities. If one snake almost killed her just by slithering across her path, how was she going to handle anything bigger than that?

Isabel gently probed her sore, swollen leg muscles with undoubtedly experienced hands. It hurt, though only just, and Zoë sighed as she wrapped a surprisingly cold compress around the area. "Where am I?" she asked in a rasp, and she gratefully accepted the water that she was offered a second later. Isabel propped her head up with her hand and gave her tiny sips of the soothing liquid.

"Oh, maybe a four or five day's ride west from where we found you. We've been on the move since then, but it's been slow goings with the unexpected, and might I add unconscious, extra person." Isabel explained. "You should try and go back to sleep. No need to get up yet while you still need healing."

Zoë nodded and shifted to get more comfortable, her eyes drifting shut while Isabel crushed some type of herb beneath two rocks. The woman talked some more, but Zoë barely acknowledged that she was speaking. She also heard conversation outside, and assumed it was Isabel's brother and husband, as she had said. She heard the tent flap open and a man's voice reverberated through the tent. Isabel spoke back in a whisper, having realized Zoë was already falling back asleep.

"No, I didn't catch her name..." she vaguely heard before dreams claimed her again.

•

•

When next Zoë awoke, flashes of her memory during her fever dreams came back to her. She briefly recalled Isabel's words, remembering that, apparently, including the woman she had met, there were a three people watching over her. Why they would bother, she didn't know, but she assumed it was because they were kind. She _had_ seen the two men Isabel mentioned, albeit in a hazy fog when she attempted to remember their faces.

There was a taller blonde and a slightly shorter, dark-haired man. That much she was able to make out during her fleeting wakefulness during her illness. Zoë sat up with a groan and used her right arm to rub at her eyes. She started when she realized her clothing was missing, and she was clad in only a long, loose, man's shirt. The front apparently laced, and the "V" of the shirt rested far too low on her chest to properly preserve her modesty. She couldn't tie the string, unfortunately, with only one hand, so she gave up with a sigh. And at the sudden thought of someone undressing and redressing her, she flushed. With only one woman in the camp, she sincerely hoped Isabel could have handled it alone.

She shifted her left arm, finding that it was still wrapped tight and snug within soft linen. And the two thin wooden slabs that served as a splint were covered in the linen as well to prevent chafing against her delicate skin. The arm was tied to her chest with a sling, and had not been pulled through the sleeve of the loose shirt, so she had to pull the cloth back and peer beneath it to see the splint.

Zoë grunted as she got to her knees, tossing the blanket back and standing on her weak and shaky legs. She found her calf was no longer sprained, or at least well on its way to the mend. And she could walk without the nerve-wrenching pinch that she remembered from her last use of it. It was still tender and sore, however, so she moved it gingerly to keep it from a relapse, her step faltering in a limp.

Zoë tugged the shirt down subconsciously with her good hand, despite the fact that the hem of the fine, woolen cloth came well down her thigh. She supposed her clothing needed to be burned if she had been running a fever as Isabel told her. It was common knowledge that - to prevent infection -clothing was customarily used until the sickness had passed, and then burned.

She inspected her bag in the corner, only to remember how she used her extra clothing on her bed in the forest. If they were in a hurry, they wouldn't have taken the time to pack it. It must have gotten left behind.

Obviously, Isabel hadn't considered dressing her with her own clothing, or they simply decided it'd be better to shop for clothes. She wasn't sure who had lent her the shirt, but she was certain it wasn't Isabel, the woman was far too petite. Her cheeks turned hot again at the thought of wearing a man's shirt, and she wondered whom it belonged to out of the two men in the camp. One of which she knew was married, she wasn't certain of the other, Isabel's brother, was he?

Zoë stumbled about in search of pants, as her caretakers hadn't supplied her with even a simple pair of trousers. And she didn't care to walk about the camp in her state of undress. She froze in place when the tent flap moved and someone stepped inside. Their eyes met and both seemed too startled to move, it was the shorter man, the one with dark hair. If Zoë wasn't so shocked, she might have snickered at the fact that he was obviously a good three to four inches shorter than her, give or take.

Her hand gripped the hem of her shirt tighter and tugged it down, her subconscious attempt to hide her - no doubt - partially visible womanhood beneath the thin shirt. Her cheeks burned with unbridled embarrassment. The man, however, seemed to regain his composure, (all too quickly for her liking) and stood up straighter.

He was an interestingly handsome man, Zoë thought, despite her situation. His features, albeit emotionless, were striking, coupled with piercing, dark grey eyes that seemed to see right through her. And she didn't miss the fact that those eyes had given an appreciative sweep of her hardly-concealed form. Something she found to be surprisingly flattering, yet also intrusive.

She could see that despite his short stature, he was very well built, albeit a little thin. And the sword at his belt told her he was no novice in the art of combat. That, coupled with a scar or two on his somewhat visible chest. Visible, as he wore a rather similar shirt to the one she was clad in. But the shirt he wore was smaller than hers, and now she honestly hoped he was Isabel's husband, as wearing the shirt of someone's husband seemed so scandalous to her flustered brain. However, the next few seconds dashed those hopes away with ease.

"Isabel! The girl is awake!" he called in a familiar, deep - and if she were honest with herself - swoon-worthy voice. Wait, why was his voice familiar? She was certain she'd heard it before...

Isabel burst into the tent in a tizzy, "Thanks, Levi-bro! You can go now." she turned the disgruntled man around and shoved him out, eliciting a scoff and a sound of protest from him.

"I need the satchel." he retorted, avoiding Isabel's hands and stepping back inside. He skirted around Zoë, stooping down to grave a small satchel on the floor before he turned around to leave.

' _Bro? So that was her brother?_ ' Zoë bit her lip and felt her blush spread to her ears, now realizing that was the first time a man had ever seen her in anything less modest than riding trousers.

Isabel chuckled after she closed the tent flap and spun to face Zoë. "Oh! Right, sorry about your clothes. You were sick so I had to wash them, I just washed them an hour or so ago, actually. They'll be dry soon, in maybe ten minutes." she explained.

"Oh, I see." Zoë sighed in relief, at least she would soon have her clothing back. Though she has assumed the clothing would be burned...then again, it was an injury-induced sickness. "And this is...?" she fingered the shirt.

"Oh, my husband: Farlan, had to lend you a shirt, I'm afraid you are just a little too tall for Levi's shirts to cover you, at least half-modestly. Don't tell him I said that, he has a short-man complex and he just _loses it_ when his height is mentioned." Isabel had leaned in to whisper and pulled back with a loud, obnoxious chortle that made Zoë jump.

She pressed her good hand to her chest and nodded, a slight smile tugging at her lips as she willed her heart to still. Granted, it _would have_ been more embarrassing to wear a shorter shirt, she agreed. And since Isabel didn't seem to mind that it was her husband's, she found her embarrassment over the matter fading. "He's also a clean freak: Levi, so I doubt I would've been able to convince him to lend you one anyways." Isabel chuckled. "So, what's your name, hun?" she asked, kneeling to straighten out the sleeping bag Zoë had been in.

Zoë started to speak, but found her name caught just behind her teeth, _'I can't tell them!'_ she realized, it would expose her to use her real name. She had to be quick, and think of something on the spot, something no one from home would recognize. And - thank her lucky stars - a name came to her, a name she had used for an old ragdoll when she was seven. "Hanji, my name is Hanji."

Isabel paused, "Mmm, that's a pretty name, suits you well." she stood with a smile, "No last name?"

Zoë, now Hanji, shook her head, "If I had one, I'm certain I'd have told you." she chuckled nervously.

Isabel frowned, "Orphan?" she asked, her face twisted in both sadness and sympathy.

Hanji thought of her mother and let her smile curve into a frown of her own. Her gaze shifted down and she nodded. Despite the fact that her father was alive, he never truly felt like a father to her. And she felt no remorse in claiming that she was without parents, in fact, it made her feel lighter.

"Ahh, we're the same. Of course, it's not rare in the world we live in." Isabel hummed thoughtfully, "Welcome to our little squad, Hanji." she extended a hand.

"Pleased to be here." Hanji smiled, hesitantly taking the older woman's hand and shaking it warmly.

•

•

The campfire was crackling loudly in the early evening air, coupled with the soothing chirps of crickets and birds as the majority of creatures fell asleep. From Hanji's perspective, the trio weren't very talkative people. Well, at least Levi and Farlan weren't. But Isabel was quite the chatterbox, and now (according to one offhand comment from Farlan), since she had another woman in the camp, she seemed to be two times as ecstatic. Isabel had properly introduced her to Farlan after her clothing was dry. He was taller than both Isabel and Levi, but he was practically equal to her in height. And he had scruffy, sandy blonde hair, matched with surprisingly warm, sky-blue eyes.

"So tell me, Hanji-" Farlan began, stirring up the logs in the fire, "-where are you from?"

Hanji bit her lip, "I don't really know, but I was raised in the southern Macedonia countries." she replied. Well, that wasn't entirely a lie, she _did_ grow up there after all. But it was a lie to say she didn't know her origins. She tried to suppress any guilt at lying, these were obviously good people, and she didn't _want_ to have to lie. However, her getaway depended upon it, she couldn't have anyone finding out her origins and taking her back home.

She glanced at Levi, who had been studying her since she left the tent. How could he be so nonchalant like that?! He had seen her nearly naked! And that dull, emotionless expression was all he had to show for it? ' _Honestly, it's as if he's a statue._ ' she grumbled inwardly. On the opposite end of the spectrum: outwardly, she was horribly embarrassed, and she could feel her ears burning each time she caught his eyes.

He wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he was observing her. And she wondered why he didn't look at something else? Perhaps it was because he could see through her lies? That was highly probable. After all, she had never been good at lying, and those piercing eyes seemed to mask a supreme intelligence. His eyes narrowed just slightly every time she talked, and after the thought occurred to her, she gulped when she realized it might be true. Levi could probably see right through her flimsy mask.

"Ah, that's interesting, I've never been to the southern countries, in Macedonia at least." Farlan smiled at the campfire. Hanji found herself able to return the smile easily. She had decided when she met him that she liked Farlan. He seemed very warm and kindly, along with that, he and Isabel made a handsome couple. She could see why the two were together. They were very bright and sunny in personality, such a strange contradiction to Isabel's impressionably cold, distant brother.

She couldn't deny that Levi and Isabel were siblings though, despite her red hair and brighter eyes, Isabel's face resembled her brother's, albeit slightly more plump and feminine. They were also both short in stature, and Hanji smiled as she observed the subtle similarities. "Levi! Try a roll, I made them myself." Isabel had taken a bite out of the hot bread she pulled from the pan atop the fire, and now offered it to her brother.

Levi turned his head away from the offered bread, but the smallest fraction of a smile appeared on his face as he ruffled Isabel's hair. "Oi!" she grumbled, reaching up to fix her wayward locks.

"I'm not going to eat it with your germs on it." he said, holding his hand out for a new roll.

Isabel gave a pout, but her lips soon turned upward in a mischievous grin as she reached to grab a fresh roll. Hanji had to stifle a shocked gasp when the redhead brought the roll to her mouth and subtly licked it. Isabel winked at the girl, smiling innocently as she handed the bread to her brother. "Here you go!" Hanji covered her mouth with her good hand to hide her smile when Levi ate the roll, and Isabel smirked triumphantly, turning to wiggle her brows at her.

Then the redhead seemed to ponder something and spoke, "Say, Hanji. With that broken arm I doubt you'll get very far in your travels on your own. Why don't you journey with us for a while? Just until your arm heals?" Isabel suggested.

Hanji opened her mouth to respond, but she found she was a little unsure of what to say. Should she? She didn't even know who these people were. She also wasn't certain if Levi liked that idea, although he didn't object, his eyes narrowed just slightly, and his piercing gaze intensified on the hesitant girl. She just didn't know if she should agree.

But then again, Isabel was right, traveling alone with a broken arm was not a good idea. She might as well be committing suicide by trying to travel alone. "I suppose I could. If it's no bother. I do have money, so I can buy my own food for a while." Hanji said with a deep breath and a hesitant smile.

Isabel's eyes twinkled in triumph and she beamed, "Wonderful! I'm so very glad. It's nice to finally have a girl to talk to, I haven't been in female company for months." the redhead came to sit beside Hanji, scooping bowls of stew out as she spoke. "And don't worry about food, I make too much anyways." she assured.

Hanji nodded, accepting the bowl that was pushed into her hands. She also noticed that Farlan and Levi had secluded themselves a few feet from the campfire and began to speak quietly. She couldn't focus on them long, however, as Isabel was soon trying to get her attention. "So, I assume you don't have any family. I can't fathom not having at least a little family." the woman began.

"It's lonely." Hanji nodded, and _that_ wasn't a lie. Her home was miserable and secluded after her mother died. And in her repeated opinion, her father was never like family. He never behaved like a father, but rather like a distant relative. But she didn't want to think about her father now, though, so she changed the subject. "Where are you traveling to?" she asked in sudden curiosity, if she was going to be with them for the month or so it took to heal, she might as well know.

Isabel smiled, "Home. It's been about three months since we left. It's in a smaller town to the west of the Servian country." she explained.

"I was headed the same way." Hanji admitted.

"Really? What a coincidence! Or maybe not, I never know whether to believe in fate or not." Isabel waved her hand around enthusiastically, and Hanji smiled, this woman was something else. Her personality was so carefree. "I can't wait to see our little sister again." she murmured.

"You have another sibling?" Hanji asked in surprise.

"Yes. We grew up in an orphanage. Our parents died when I was five, and Levi was seven. Our sister was only a year old." she explained.

"Oh, I'm sorry about your parents." Hanji said in sympathy, placing a hand on Isabel's.

"It's hard to remember much, but I know our mother was an Oriental, and our father was native to Servia. They met by chance when her clan was fleeing the Orient because of some war." Isabel tucked a hand under her chin, holding a bowl in the other. "Levi and Mikasa look a lot like mum. And I took after papa."

"He had red hair?" Hanji asked.

"No, it was my grandmum on his side. I do remember he always said she had lots of pretty, red hair. But papa was blonde, like Farlan. It's his eyes I took after." Isabel said with a nostalgic smile.

Hanji looked over and observed Levi, studying his features. He did look somewhat Oriental. She had never met an Oriental in person, but she had seen many pictures in the books of her library. "How did they die?"

Isabel frowned, "A raid." that was all she needed to say.

Hanji bit her lip, having heard of the savage tendencies of raiders all her life, and how they ravaged and killed in small towns, "I'm sorry for asking. It must have been hard."

"It was. I just wish our parents hadn't missed out on us. I'd have them experience Mikasa's first step, my marriage, and how we've all grown up." Isabel said with a sigh, "People die, but some do before their time. I wish I could change that." Hanji nodded. "But! I have accepted it as the past, and I can't do anything by dwelling on it. We have Mikasa to look after, and our lives to think about. There wasn't much time for grief." Isabel said loudly and straightened up with a deep breath.

"I would love to meet Mikasa. How old is she?" Hanji asked.

"She is about sixteen now. Couple years younger than you, eh?" Isabel turned to her with that question in her gaze.

"Uh, yeah, I'll be eighteen soon." Hanji smiled.

"Just as I thought. You're only two years younger than me." Isabel supplied.

Hanji put that information together in her head, determining that would make Isabel twenty and Levi twenty-two. They were still so young weren't they? And Isabel was so open! She hadn't expected to learn so much about her so quickly. "You are surprisingly trusting to simply tell a stranger like me so much personal information. I don't know if I could have so much faith in someone I'd only just met to tell them so much about myself."

Isabel chuckled, "Well, it's not as if you are a stranger to me. I've been doting on you for over a week now. I feel as if I know you well enough I suppose." she leaned in closer to hand Hanji a bowl of stew. "Plus I have been dying to speak to our little patient for so many days, I just got carried away. But I trust you are a good person. My intuition has never been wrong." Isabel winked.

Hanji giggled and reached her hand up to take a sip of her stew (she had to sip it from the rim of the bowl, as she could only use one arm). The stew also happened to be surprisingly delicious. Compared to her own concoctions when she made camp. Come to think of camps, she looked around, observing the horses and tents (she spotted Chance, and smiled briefly). Curiosity welled, as she didn't see any boxes or a wagon or anything of the like. "What's your trade? I haven't noticed any wagons or anything. So what do you three do for a living?"

"We're mercenaries." Isabel said, voice muffled through a mouthful of stew..

Hanji stiffened, ' _Mercenaries?!_ ' her mind began to run all the horrible things she had heard about mercenaries through her head. They were people who sold their abilities, often to the more socially powerful, of whom were to afraid to sully their hands. They were hired to fight battles, steal, kidnap, or even assassinate in some circumstances. Hanji didn't know what to say, in honesty. These three seemed so nice at first (although that Levi didn't seem to be open with his emotions, he still seemed like he _could_ be a nice person). She just couldn't believe such kindly people had probably been involved in murder, and no-doubt stolen things.

"Does it scare you?" Isabel asked, having observed the girl's response to her statement.

Hanji jumped, she had drifted off into her thoughts and let her guard down. She was all the more uncertain about whether or not to trust these people now. "I...I...well, I can't lie. It's a frightening job." she murmured.

Isabel sighed, "It's not as if we wanted this life. Hell, when we were kids we were gonna grow up to be farmers. Fate turned the tables on us, so we adjusted our morales and even our dignity to survive." she looked down at her hands and furrowed her thin brows, red bangs hanging around her face as she spoke, "We sure as hell aren't saintly, and we've done awful things. But in our hearts, we know that we do what we do because we have to. We need to provide for our sister, we need to make sure she has a life devoid of the sins we were forced to commit. Therefore, I have no regrets. I am glad to be who I am, if it means I can make her life better, different even."

Hanji listened with a pang of guilt in her heart, she had jumped to conclusions and judged Isabel and her companions before she could explain. Granted, she supposed _anyone_ would be suspicious of a mercenary, but these people were showing her a great kindness by taking her in. She should have given them the benefit of the doubt, and been grateful that they had heart, despite the way they made their living. "I...don't think I've ever respected anybody so suddenly like that before." she chuckled, and Isabel turned to her with a smile.

"I wasn't trying to be inspirational, but I'm glad you can so easily see me that way. We do tend to avoid the more unjust jobs, but sometimes you have no other options." she explained.

Hanji nodded, "Well, I can't judge you for your life choices. As you said, you do what you have to. I understand that." and that was no lie, she genuinely understood that some people were forced into lifestyles they didn't want to live.

"If I had my way-" Isabel continued, "-I'd live in a cottage in the mountains with Farlan, maybe have some children." she chuckled at that, "Someday we will, when we earn enough to buy some land. Then we won't have to sell our skills, we could just live peacefully. That's what Farlan and me are working towards anyway. I don't know about Levi. Sometimes it seems he doesn't enjoy this way of life, and other times he seems indifferent." she shrugged.

Hanji glanced over at Levi and Farlan, and found that the former was speaking in hushed tones with the latter. And he occasionally glanced her way too. She felt her heart rate increase, a cold sweat break out on her forehead, and a shiver run down her spine. She still felt as though he suspected her, and she was certain that intuition was correct.

Isabel changed the subject of conversation shortly, but Hanji was preoccupied with her thoughts, and the fact that those piercing eyes kept looking her way. He made her nervous, she concluded, and she wasn't sure she liked him.

•

•

"Hanji seems like a nice girl." Farlan smiled in the direction of the young lady as his enthusiastic wife chattered away. He could tell from the girl's expression that she was rather preoccupied with Isabel's rambunctious personality, but it was nice him see his wife so happy.

"She lied." Levi muttered, glaring in the girl's direction.

"Hmm? Lied? About what? Her name?" Farlan turned to Levi in confusion, furrowing his brow.

Levi shook his head, "No, she responds to it far too well for it to be a fake name. I meant her origins. She lied about that. Her hesitance was practically tangible. And she had a hard time explaining it too, I could see that she was sweating and she looked nervous. She was lying." he explained.

Farlan raised an eyebrow, "Are you sure you aren't looking too far into it? That explanation makes it seem like you were just looking for the slightest reason to doubt her. Maybe you were the reason she was nervous. I know I'd be pretty nervous if I got walked in on by the opposite sex while wearing nothing but a shirt for starters." he nudged the disgruntled man with a teasing smirk.

"I already told you I took no pleasure in that." Levi scowled.

"Well there's that and the fact that you were glaring at her all evening, and she's with people she doesn't know. Perhaps she is just shy? Don't be so suspicious, Levi. Hanji is just a girl, and a very nice girl at that. Look at how well she gets along with Isabel!" he pointed.

Levi glanced over and blinked in disinterest. Isabel was chattering excitedly and probing Hanji's hair with her fingers, no doubt determining that she would want the girl to grow it out or something of the like. He sighed and shifted, "No matter, I'm still going to keep an eye on her. Unlike you, I see no reason to trust her implicitly until she gives me one."

Farlan shrugged, "Suit yourself. But I would bet she has absolutely nothing to be suspicious over."

Levi wasn't certain of that, but he didn't say anything. To be honest, she was annoyingly familiar, from the moment they found her in the woods he could have sworn he'd seen her before. The memory eluded him, however, and he could only pass it off as coincidence. But when her voice seemed just as familiar as her face, he couldn't help the seed of doubt growing in his chest. Who was that girl?

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **Next time, Hanji learns just how infuriating Levi can be...and just how sexy he can be.**


	3. Chapter 3

Hanji gave a sigh when Levi finally signaled for them to camp for the day. Ever since she agreed to join them nearly a week before, it had been steady, constant traveling. It was nice, however, that she had help when it came to her broken arm, as she could hardly do anything. Her most often performed task was collecting firewood, since she could just tuck the sticks under her splinted arm. But she couldn't help with pitching the tents, cooking, or tying the horses, so in that regard, she felt like a burden.

She was glad for Isabel and Farlan as company, she didn't know if she could stay cheerful without them. They were a rather comedic pair, always joking and causing her to laugh at dinnertime. Levi, however, was still avoiding her for the most part, but she _did_ find he had warmed up to her, if only just slightly. She assumed so, at least, as he wasn't staring at her so often, and he'd sometimes help her if she was struggling. Especially when it came down to cleanliness and organization. Isabel was correct in saying he was a clean freak, she wondered if he had a condition she had read about in her studies. Recalling the name was difficult, but she had finally remembered it to be germophobia. Hanji halted her horse, tugging lightly on Chance's reins and shifting to move out of the saddle.

Dismounting was difficult, especially with one arm, but during the past week she had figured out how to manage it without breaking any new bones. She leaned forward on her elbows and swung her left leg over the saddle, balancing in the right stirrup as she prepared to step down. Her left foot touched the dirt and she moved to pull her right foot out. At that moment, Chance decided to move forward to eat some nearby grass. Hanji yelped as she lost her balance and tipped backwards, her right foot still stuck in the stirrup.

Her anticipated fall never happened though, and she opened her closed eyes as strong, steady arms propped her back on her feet. "Careful." Levi said, turning to tie her horse without a second glance.

"Th-Thanks." Hanji murmured, though she doubted he heard. She supposed he did have a soft side. Well, she already knew that, but so far he seemed to primarily demonstrate it to Isabel and Farlan. It was an interesting experience, feeling him hold her like that. His grip was so solid, steady, it felt completely reliable. She was certain she needn't ever fear falling over if the Shorty was around. Her lip twitched upward at the thought of her private nickname for the raven-haired man. She knew he'd probably kill her if she ever said it aloud, but that was the thrill she supposed.

"Hanji!" the sound of her faux name caused her to jump in fright. Isabel ran up to the startled girl and tugged on her good arm, "Come! Come here! Quick!" she said urgently, no hint of a smile on her face. Hanji blinked, wondering what could be wrong to make her so frantic, and followed along carefully.

"What is it, Isabel?" she asked as the woman pulled her into the (very recently pitched) bigger tent, sitting her down and peeking outside as if she were trying to spy on somebody.

"Today is wash day." Isabel murmured.

"Wash day?" Hanji blinked, that didn't seem like anything important, "So?"

Isabel looked at her with crazed and frantic eyes, "I've gotta warn you." she said as she sat down close to the confused girl. "Levi hates anything to do with being dirty. On wash day, we all take baths. And basically, if you don't clean yourself well enough, you'll regret it. Our previous wash days got skipped because we weren't near a river. No doubt Levi is losing his mind over how dirty we all are." the redhead snickered and peeked outside the tent again.

"That doesn't seem so bad. Just take a bath right?" Hanji shrugged. This didn't seem like a big deal. If anything, it seemed to her like Isabel was just over-exaggerating this as a joke. She tended to do that. Besides, what could Levi _possibly_ do if they didn't clean themselves well enough?

"I suppose that's true." Isabel sighed, moving to shuffle through her new clothes. Hanji had spent some of the money she had gotten from pawning off her jewelry to buy both herself and her fellow woman some more clothing. A well appreciated gesture, as washing both their clothing and themselves at the same time would be a rather embarrassing matter. "I just hope you can manage with that broken arm." Isabel murmured to herself.

"What was that?"

"Hmm? Oh nothing."

•

•

Hanji furrowed her brow and stared at the soap bar, contemplating her next move. Getting undressed had been difficult enough with one hand in a splint. Granted it had been easier after removing the sling, but nonetheless, it was still quite a job. Now she wondered how she would manage washing herself with just one hand? She shifted her fingers around the slippery bar of soap and dipped a toe in the river, testing its temperature.

"Shit!" she hissed, pulling her foot back in her surprise. The chilly water would certainly need some adjusting to, if only just to take a few steps. Her colorful language was something she had picked up after being in the company of Isabel and Levi for almost a week. They were rather foul-mouthed, and it easily rubbed off on her after a couple days.

Hanji sighed and steeled herself, walking three steps in before she stopped to stiffen. She had only ever had warm baths as a Lady in the Titania household, and the inns had warm baths as well. This was her first time ever bathing in a freezing river. Though she assumed, what with her running away and all, that it was bound to happen one day.

She bent over to dip the soap in the water and then proceeded to rub it against her skin until it frothed. It slipped from her hands a good many times, and she spent most of her bath floundering about, knee-deep in the water as she retrieved the bar. By the time she got out, she was certain she might have caught a cold. Hanji shivered and pressed her jaw tightly together as her teeth chattered.

She toweled herself off and pulled on her clothing, piece by agonizing piece, then proceeded to walk back to camp. Isabel gave her a scrutinizing look upon her return, and she wasn't alone, Farlan and Levi gave the same glare. However, Farlan and Isabel's glares soon morphed into smiles, and they continued with their daily chores. Levi wasn't so forgiving, though, and she felt his icy gaze on her for the better part of the day.

She couldn't help but wonder if she hadn't met his standards. Not that she cared, there really wasn't anything he could do that came to mind.

•

•

Hanji heard muffled voices and opened one eye to assess her situation. It had been a day or so since her bathing experience, and she was rather looking forward to spending her next bath at an inn. At least, she _hoped_ they'd reach an inn tomorrow. Levi had said they would, but she couldn't help but feel nervous over it, she hated that cold river, and bathing in it was ten times worse. She honestly wondered how peasants coped in those conditions? Maybe they were used to it, but still, it was horrid, she didn't think _she'd_ ever get used to it.

As for today, it was another typical day of travel, they woke up, ate breakfast, rode, stopped for lunch, rode again, and made camp. Dinner was a rare treat, as Isabel had caught some fish, and Farlan had a new, fascinating tale of their previous travels to tell. Hanji had gone to bed early though, as she was exhausted from their early mornings and long days of riding. Isabel and Farlan had only just gotten into bed. Their accommodations weren't the best, as they had yet to procure a private tent for Hanji. Until then, she was sharing the bigger tent with them. The one that Isabel and Farlan originally slept in alone.

The voices belonged to none other than the ones she was sharing with, and she quieted her breath to hear what they were saying. "-says we'll be going early tomorrow to see Lord Cedric. We need to collect before we go home." Farlan was saying.

Isabel shuffled, "I see. What about Hanji? Are we just going to leave her alone while we go?"

"No, Levi wants you to stay and guard the camp. I'm sure you can manage it, at least until we get back." Farlan replied with a sigh. "I can't wait until we don't have to do this anymore. I'm sick of travel, I want to settle down...maybe start a family."

Isabel chuckled briefly, "We all feel the same, Farlan. That day will come, we just need to be patient."

"I know."

"I just hope I'll be able to handle Hanji's questions tomorrow. She's a curious thing, and I find it hard to resist her big, brown, puppy eyes." the red haired woman sighed with a light giggle.

Hanji smiled briefly, but Isabel was right, she was full of questions. Who was Lord Cedric? Why were they meeting him? Did it have something to do with her? Or was it a part of their mercenary affairs?

"Well, we aren't going to wake easily if we stay up and talk now are we?" Farlan yawned.

"Mmhm." Isabel hummed in agreement, and Hanji heard them shuffle around a good deal before they settled and gave tired sighs.

Hanji stared at the tent, her heart thumping wildly from her nerves as she considered all the possibilities of their visit to this Lord Cedric. From how they spoke, it sounded like simple, mercenary work. But she had a growing seed of paranoia in her mind, and she suddenly didn't feel so sleepy anymore. She waited until her company was asleep before she stood and went outside, clumsily wrapping a coat around her shoulders with her good hand.

The nights weren't too chilly, as summer was only just starting to cool for the impending coming of autumn, but a light coat was sometimes necessary. Hanji went to sit by the warm embers of the dying fire and sighed, breathing deeply to calm her racing heart. She didn't like this type of fear, the one where you never know if you are truly justified in fearing something. She was scared, but she knew there was only a slim chance that her companions knew who she was. A very slim chance, as she'd had ample opportunity to determine whether or not her disappearance was known.

From her vague questions to curious investigating in the towns they came across (which were few and far between), she could find no evidence that anyone was looking for her. Naturally she was far more open with Isabel after she had confirmed that she wasn't on any wanted or missing posters. Though, that did cause Hanji to wonder yet again: did her father even search? And if he did, had he already given up?

That made her angry, for some reason she couldn't discern. The fact that it seemed her father wasn't even looking. But then again, why should he? He never cared enough to go looking for her even when she lived under his very roof.

"Some father you were..." she muttered bitterly, gently tossing a log onto the fire to keep it burning. "It's as if you really want me back." she sighed sarcastically, looking up at the stars. They were especially bright tonight, or maybe she was just seeing them differently than she did before. Looking at them brought memories of her astronomy classes back to her. Her mother had known she loved stargazing, so she hired an old astronomer to teach her about the stars.

Hanji loved learning, it was rare for a Lady to have such an extensive education. Most women of noble blood were simply meant to be a man's toy, only kept around for the purpose of heirs and "stress relief". But Hanji's mother never seemed to mind.

And even though she didn't understand at the time, she had overheard her mother explain to the maids that her father was kind to her in that regard. She had still only been arranged to marry to him for the purpose of money, but she was apparently content. And Hanji felt somewhat guilty over the fact that she had shunned a life her mother had embraced. She often wondered if her mother would be disappointed or proud of her. But she could never know, not until she met up with her on the other side.

If there was a heaven that is, she had been taught that there was a higher being watching over them, but she sometimes wondered if it was true. Perhaps she'd know in the future, but that was a thought for another day...

"What are you doing?"

Hanji gasped and pressed her good hand to her startled heart, Levi stood just outside his tent with his arms crossed, gazing nonchalantly at her with an inquisitive brow raised. "Don't sneak up on people, you nearly gave me a heart attack!" Hanji hissed, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin upon one.

"I didn't sneak up on you, I've been standing here for a full minute. You were simply distracted." Levi stated matter-of-factly, moving to sit on a log across from the fire. "And that doesn't answer my question."

Hanji narrowed her eyes at him, ' _Irritating shorty...'_ she accused in her head, "I couldn't sleep."

Levi's brow raised yet again, but he seemed to accept her answer, "I see."

Hanji expected him to say more, but the silence dragged on indefinitely, and she found herself drifting into thought again. He wasn't exactly looking at her, and she snuck a peek at the boring young man. She only then realized that he hadn't buttoned his shirt all the way, and his chiseled chest was in plain sight. Her eyes couldn't help but sweep the entirety of his torso, appreciating the sight.

She could feel her cheeks redden as she attempted to peer lower, and she quickly glanced away from him. Ever since they met he had easily flustered her, but she assumed that was only because he had walked in on her practically naked when they first met. Of course she was easily embarrassed!

At least that's what she told herself.

She could definitely not deny that he was a most handsome man, and she would have loved to get to know him better, but his personality threw her off. He was too quiet, too judgmental, and too much of a clean freak. She just didn't like it. Though that might have been just because his startling, dark grey eyes always made her feel like she was an open book. "What are you staring at? Do I have something on my face?" he asked in his usual, emotionless tone.

Hanji jumped, realizing she had been studying his face without her own permission, "Sorry, I was daydreaming...or...sorry." she blushed, realizing she already apologized.

"Tch..." Levi scoffed, tossing a twig into the fire. "You should go to bed, we have a good five hours to ride tomorrow." he said, glancing up at her to see if she'd actually listen.

Hanji sighed, "Right." she stood and brushed off her pants, tugging her coat tighter around her shoulders. "Goodnight, sorry I woke you." she muttered as she went back into the larger tent. Levi didn't respond, at least that she could hear. And she didn't bother scolding his bad manners in her mind. She was too tired for it.

Hanji lay her head down and tugged her blanket up to her chin, closing her eyes and allowing herself to fall asleep. Her worries over tomorrow were temporarily put to rest, (thankfully), and her sleep was nothing if not peaceful.

•

•

Levi didn't like castles, they were too big, too many rooms and too much dust. One couldn't possibly keep a castle clean, at least according to his standards. Even with the maids there always seemed to be leftover dust somewhere. But what was worse about castles was their stereotypical occupants. The Lords, Dukes, and sometimes Kings, that inhabited them were often arrogant and self-centered. However, they were responsible for filling his belly, along with those of his sisters and his brother-in-law, so he couldn't hold a grudge against them.

He and Farlan had awoken just after sunrise and mounted their horses, leaving camp with only Isabel awake and aware. As far as he knew, the young lady they had decided to chauffeur around was probably still snoring and drooling on her pillow. "Tch..." the thought made him scoff lightly, the girl would likely deny it, but he saw how nasty her sleeping habits were as they cared for her during her fever. He honestly didn't have much of a good opinion of her. Hanji was awkward, clumsy, and uncomfortably quiet. But maybe he wouldn't mind her presence so much if she didn't smell? He rather hoped she would start bathing properly soon before he was forced to do something drastic.

They had arrived at the castle only minutes before, and a guard was leading Levi and Farlan to see Lord Cedric. Levi had only met the man once, during which he had accepted his simple request to retrieve an item from his brother. An "old friend" as the man had put it. He didn't like Cedric either, but at least, compared to Hanji, her faults were far less than the Lord's.

The man was typical, arrogant, and stood astride his high horse, as if the world revolved around him. It was also clear that the man was twisted and cruel, considering the surrounding farmland was less than well-cared for. Along with those discredits to the Lord's name, Levi had spotted a few harlots scurrying about the castle during both visits. As far as he knew, the Lord was a married man, so one could possibly count "dishonorable" and "disloyal" among his labels. But when it came to Lords, that was often a given.

Levi and Farlan were led into a large room, the walls were filled with shelves and books, and the solitary desk gave the impression that it was a private study. Lord Cedric sat upon the chair behind the polished desk and scribbled on paper, not noticing, or simply just ignoring their arrival. But Levi knew to wait, angering a Lord was not on his schedule for the day, and he'd rather not have a repeat of that incident with Lord Ragúe...

Lord Cedric finished scribbling and put his pen down with a sigh before he looked up to acknowledge the men before him. "Good morning, gentlemen. I trust you were able to retrieve it?" he stood and skirted around his desk, walking towards them.

Levi reached into a bag he had slung around his shoulder and pulled out a tiny, ornate box, handing it to the Lord. Farlan spoke for him, as Levi preferred not to speak if he could avoid it, he wasn't a very social person after all. "We found the box you described." Farlan said quietly.

Cedric smirked and placed the box on his desk, not opening it even if only to satisfy their curiosity as to what exactly they had stolen. "No doubt, there was some difficulty, I apologize if my brother might have caused trouble."

Farlan shrugged, "We managed, as we always do."

Cedric nodded, "I shall compensate you for any damages, along with the promised payment."

Farlan shook his head, "It isn't necessary, there was nothing we couldn't handle, we only need what was promised."

Cedric smiled at that, in relief, as Lords tended to not want to part with their gold. Farlan knew that well, and as such, refusing extra pay was how they had gotten such a good reputation among the highborn folk. "Ahh, I see, if you insist. Well, in that case, I shall send you on your way." he moved to grab a small chest of gold and handed it to the two, who opened it and checked the contents before they accepted it.

Farlan and Levi bowed and moved to leave, "Oh, Ackerman?" Cedric stopped the shorter man, who turned with a questioning brow raised. Farlan looked back, but left the room, as their employers often wanted to have an afterword with Levi. Cedric pulled a small parchment from his desk and walked toward Levi. "I thought I should let you know, as the reward is substantial."

Levi took the offered paper and examined it, his eyes narrowing at the contents. It was a Hunting Bounty, as he liked to call them, but in this particular scenario the subject was wanted alive. That in itself was rare, but apparently the bounty's maker was an rather wealthy Lord from the Mercian country. "Why would _you_ give me this?" Levi asked, curious as to why one Lord would help another for seemingly no reason, and his tone implying as much.

Cedric rubbed at the back of his neck, "Zoë Titania, the girl in the bounty, was to marry my son." he explained, "But apparently she's been kidnapped, and, as her future father-in-law, I assumed I should aid in her rescue."

Levi raised a brow again, looking down at the paper. Titania? The name did sound familiar, but he couldn't place it. That reward was tantalizing though, more than his little trio had made in three years. The Lord obviously really wanted his daughter back. The girl in the replicated painting seemed young, about mid-teen, and she had long, luscious hair that grew at least down to her waist. She seemed quite pretty, and her face rung a bell in his mind, but so far he hadn't placed it.

"Well, I'll keep this in mind, and if I find a Zoë Titania during my travels, rest assured I'll attempt to bring her back. I cannot promise anything." Levi folded the parchment and slipped it inside his jacket, taking his leave once more.

"That's all I could possibly ask for, thank you, Ackerman." Cedric said as he left.

Levi met up with Farlan again and continued to the stables, mounting his horse and making for their camp. In honesty, he felt like he should remember something, like his mind contained pieces of a puzzle, and he had misplaced some of them. Titania. The name was so familiar, the _girl_ was so familiar, and yet, where on earth had he seen her before?

•

•

Hanji didn't ask any questions, not a single one, about where Levi and Farlan had gone. That alone bothered Isabel. She had figured she might be relieved, but the fact made her suspicious. It wasn't only her lack of curiosity, Hanji seemed sad, distracted, and tired. The girl looked as if she weren't even there, Isabel noted, as the brunette precariously hung some clothes to dry. Her arm gave her some trouble, but it was a job she could accomplish at least.

Isabel observed her with pursed lips, determining that it seemed time for a heart-to-heart chat with her. "Hanji?" she called, and the girl blinked before turning to look at her. "Come. Come here, sweetheart." she pat the log she sat on, gesturing for the girl to sit.

Hanji dropped what she was doing and walked over to sit down, twiddling the linen of her splint between her fingers, "Is something wrong?"

Isabel shook her head, reaching out to gently rub a comforting circle on the younger woman's back, "Hanji, what's making you so morose today?" Hanji looked at her in surprise, her mouth opening without sound to express her protestation. "Don't look at me like that. I've had the same, general feeling before, multiple times. I think I can recognize it in another person." Isabel chuckled.

Hanji closed her lips and pursed them with a sigh, "Well..." she drawled. The real her, the Zoë Titania she had locked away to make room for her new persona, was never a very open or extroverted person. She had difficulty expressing her feelings in most regards. So, opening up to Isabel, after only having truly known her for about a week, and growing to trust her, was hard to say the least. "It's my birthday." she muttered.

Isabel smiled briefly, before she thought it over and her face fell in realization, "And that makes you sad?" she prodded.

Hanji nodded, instead of the truth, she did have to bend this one. The true reasoning for her melancholy was the fact that her mother's death had also occurred on her sixth birthday. She didn't like lying, not one bit, it wasn't in her character. But it needed to be done. "I was abandoned as a newborn, barely a day old. So, every birthday just feels like a reminder that my parents didn't want me."

Isabel sighed, "I see. I'm sorry Hanji." Hanji flinched internally when she accepted her fib. And she shifted uncomfortably under the older woman's gaze. "But you don't need to be sad anymore. You have friends now, friends who are growing to see you as one of their own. That's how I feel at least. And I know I don't want you to feel sad." Isabel said with a soft smile. Hanji have a half-hearted smile, nodding. Isabel scooted closer and tugged her into a side-hug, "How about-" she began, "-just to cheer you up, you and I go and shop when we get to town? Just the two of us, doing girl stuff and having a little fun?"

Hanji blinked, "Girl stuff?" she repeated, not necessarily sure of what Isabel meant.

Isabel scoffed good-naturedly, "Don't you like to look at clothes and just peruse the shops every now and then?" she asked.

Hanji thought about it for a moment. The last time she went shopping, just for fun, was with her mother, over twelve years ago. She still distinctly remembered a small, silky, powder blue dress that her mother bought her. She wore it every day she could, until she wore out the material that is. "That sounds good." she murmured, looking up at the redhead with a more heartfelt smile, it was the least she could muster anyway.

"There we go!" Isabel exclaimed, "That's what I've been waiting to see." she stood with a sigh and brushed off her pants.

"What have you been waiting to see?" a new voice rang out and Isabel spun around in surprise when Farlan and Levi walked into the camp.

"You're back!" Isabel jumped to her feet and practically skipped over to Farlan to give him a hug and a purposefully exaggerated kiss. Obviously just to annoy her brother, and it worked.

Levi cringed away from the couple and scoffed, "Alright, save your mushy shit for later. We need to pack up." he muttered.

Isabel chuckled along with Farlan and followed his instructions, immediately setting out to deconstruct the camp. Hanji pursed her lips and looked at the laundry she had just hung, blinking in realization, "Oi, wait just a second!" she exclaimed without thinking, and her cheeks felt like they were suddenly on fire when the three of them stopped and looked at her with raised brows.

" _Damnit...!_ " she murmured under her breath, "Sorry, I...um, just put the laundry up to dry. It needs about an hour." she looked down at her feet and twirled her good hand in her hair bashfully, still feeling their intense gazes.

There was a long, drawn out moment of silence. And she felt like her face was going to burn off out of embarrassment. What possessed her to give them orders like that? She was their guest - or resident invalid - whichever they preferred. Not their superior. Breaking herself out of her old title of a Lady was going to be difficult, of that she was certain. After all, she was used to giving orders, it was a nasty habit.

The silence was broken by a loud, obnoxious laugh that made her jump.

" _Ahhh_...a woman after your own heart, Levi!" Farlan chuckled, earning a sharp, incredulous glare from said person. Levi's head turned so sharply Hanji thought he might have given himself whiplash. "And to think _you_ of all people were going to pack up without waiting for the laundry. Shame on you!" he was blatantly teasing now, despite the shorter man's narrowed gaze and disapproving expression.

"Tch..." Levi scoffed and put the tent pole he was extracting back neatly. "Fine. We'll stay a few hours." he conceded.

Hanji bit her lip and approached the man hesitantly, "Sorry about that...and thank you." she whispered, glancing up through her eyelashes.

"For what?" he raised that thin, judgemental eyebrow yet again.

Hanji gaped and stared for a moment. "For...for not..." she stuttered, _'-for not being angry at me._ ' After all, she had given this man orders in his own camp, he had a right to be upset with her. She didn't finish her sentence aloud, however, and his expression morphed into one of boredom.

At that she finally felt her ever-tightening restraint snap. He was seriously getting on her nerves! After a week with him (well, two if she counted her unconscious time with them), she was getting more irritated every time she spoke to him. She was trying to be nice and he acted as though she was stupid for attempting to speak.

Hanji didn't want to blow her top, so she resolved to run a hand through her scruffy hair and sigh, "You know what? Nevermind." she huffed and walked away, sitting down rather grumpily on the nearest log. _'I don't know why I even want to be nice to him, but that's the last time I try.'_ she complained in her head, fixing the young man in question with a secret glare every now and again.

•

•

They arrived at the nearest inn later that day, much later than they had planned, but it was still light out. And they sent Farlan inside to rent their rooms while they took care of the horses. One with separate beds for Hanji and Levi (they both had a more than a few complaints about that in the beginning. However they had both resolved to silently resent the choice after Farlan privately scolded each of them). And one room for Isabel and Farlan himself.

"Hanji has been rather moody today." Isabel said when she finally had Levi alone. Hanji gently brushed Chance with her good arm on the far end of the stables, having just haphazardly removed the tack from his body.

"Why should I care?" he asked, truly uninterested.

"Well, because I think you are the cause. That's why." Isabel explained.

"What did I do this time?" Levi sighed as he turned to her with an inquisitive look on his face. He honestly did not care if the girl was irked by him. He was used to it, and he didn't really care what a lot of people thought of him. But when it came to Isabel, he didn't want to upset or disappoint her, so he felt the least he could do was listen to her now.

"You haven't been very nice." Isabel scolded, he rolled his eyes at that, "And I think she likes you." she added.

" _What?!_ " Levi exclaimed in disbelief.

"Not like _that_." she blew a raspberry as if to show he was silly for thinking that. "I've never really seen anybody _try_ to instigate a friendship with you, so I can't be sure, but I think she just wants to be approved of. _Maybe_ even be your friend. Like I said, I don't know for sure." Isabel shrugged.

Levi scowled, "Hmm." was all he said in reply. It wasn't as if he truly disliked the girl, but as he had told himself before, her personality just didn't sit well with him. His gaze flickered over to her just as she pressed a kiss to her gelding's nose. "Gross..." he muttered, too quietly for Isabel to hear beside him. Hanji looked his way, and as soon as she realized he was looking at her-her brows furrowed. He watched in silent, hidden amusement as her demeanor changed from calm and gentle to tense and frustrated.

He didn't understand women all that much, then again, he never really cared to try in the first place. Earlier she had thanked him, for _what_ he had no idea. Women had rather complicated thought-processes after all. His ignorance seemed to be the cause of her mood change around him. After thinking about it, he supposed it had something to do with her blatant orders earlier that day. If she thought he cared, he really didn't. After all, it was just laundry, and he was not one to impose when it came to hygienic matters.

Isabel suddenly pushed off from the wall with a sigh, "When Farlan gets back, tell him I went into town. Okay?" she said, walking away without waiting for Levi's answer.

Levi nodded, watching as Isabel laid a hand on Hanji's shoulder and said something that made the girl break out in a grin. She then linked arms with her younger friend and they walked out of the stables, talking all the way. "Tch..." he scoffed.

•

•

Hanji felt quite uplifted, in honesty. She hadn't felt so happy since the day she ran away little over a month ago. Isabel was a loud, obnoxious, mischievous young woman, but she also had a good eye when it came to merchandise. Though they didn't buy anything like the dresses and jewelry her mother used to procure for her. They didn't have the money or luxury to. They actually spent most of their time in a weapons shop, admiring the merchandise. Isabel would grab a random weapon and explain its purpose, letting Hanji hold it if it wasn't too heavy.

"When your arm gets better-" she began after holding up a bow, "-I'll teach you how to shoot one. You've got a good build for archery, and the mechanics are fairly easy on your left hand." she explained. "Which will help, since it'll be fragile for a while after it heals."

Hanji examined the smooth, recurve wood and smiled, "I'd like that." she placed the weapon back and began to walk off.

"No, no, no!" Isabel grabbed the bow back from its stand and jogged to keep up with her. "We're buying this one. It's the perfect height for you."

Hanji stopped in her tracks, "Well, you don't need to-"

"Best have one before your arm is better. Who knows? We could be miles away from a shop when you're finally rid of the splint." Isabel interrupted. "And besides! We _are_ supposed to be shopping, and we haven't bought anything. Might as well."

Hanji bit her lip and hummed in agreement, "I suppose. Thank you, Isabel. We didn't have to buy anything for me to have a good time. I kind of feel like you are the sister I never had." she murmured.

Isabel grinned widely at that, and moved to purchase the lovely bow from the blacksmith. "I may already have a sister-" she began as they left the shop, "-but I am starting to see you in the same light." she linked her arm through Hanji's again and they began to walk back to the inn.

•

•

She was back in Levi's presence now, so all her good feelings went out the window. Sharing a room was rather risqué in her opinion. It was to save on money. It least, that's what Isabel told her, but she still preferred her own room. She didn't like the fact that this particular inn had the tub hidden behind a simple dressing screen. And the shorty was insisting she bathe first!

"Heaven knows you need it!" Levi huffed. "Has anyone ever taught you how to clean yourself? You always smell like sweat and bodily excrement!" he accused, tossing a complimentary towel at her face.

"Fine, I'll take a fucking bath!" Hanji snapped. She could feel the hair on her neck bristling and her teeth were grit in her efforts to restrain herself from attempting to strangle him. And besides his insults, he had gotten her to curse yet again. She had never cursed so blatantly before until she met this man.

"Thank you." he said, sitting on his bed and laying back. He gave her this expectant look that made her roll her eyes.

"Don't peek or I'll kill you." she warned before she went behind the screen.

"With that arm?" he quipped.

She stepped back into view and scowled, "I'll use my teeth." she hissed, returning to the tub behind the screen and failing to spot his following amused smirk. She mumbled curses and insults at him all the while as she stripped and stepped into the prepared water. She kept her bad arm propped on the tub wall while she scrubbed herself to the best of her ability.

In honesty there wasn't much she could do with just one arm, and no matter how much she scrubbed there was always a spot she couldn't reach. Like on her back for example. She didn't pay it any heed though, and rinsed her frothy hair before she stood and stepped out of the tub. She toweled herself off and shimmied into the clean clothes she had draped on the dressing screen. Cringing as she placed her arm back into the sling.

"There! I'm done, happy now?" she asked, rather childish in her demeanor as she left the screen and sat on her designated bed, pulling her knees up to her chest in a pout.

Levi stood without a word and grabbed his own clothing to change into. He went behind the screen and she shuffled deeper into her cushions with a sigh. How infuriating could a man be? She didn't think she'd ever come to think of him as anything more than a nuisance.

"Hanji." his voice rang out, and she started, sitting up and furrowing her brow. It was the first time she could think of that he'd ever said her name.

"Yes?" she called back.

"Come here." he said.

She groaned and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, walking towards the dressing screen. "What is it?" she asked. A second later her eyes were wide and she would later be scolding herself for her reaction. He wasn't naked, thank God, but he had taken his shirt off already. She went silent as her eyes instinctively admired the hard ridges and curves of muscle on his carefully toned body.

Hanji hadn't really seen many men without their shirts. And she couldn't deny she was very much attracted to the sight before her. Her eyes were especially drawn to his waist, where his pants hung low on his hips. She really couldn't believe that this was always hidden so well beneath his usual outfits. And the darker, less innocent portion of her mind had her curious as to what might lay below his waist...

"Ahem?" Levi cleared his throat, attempting to get her attention.

"Huh?" she blinked and looked up at him, trying to keep her gaze on his steely grey eyes rather than his abdomen.

"You left your clothes." he pointed to the floor, and her face went from pleasantly awestruck to an irritated scowl yet again.

"Right." Hanji muttered, brushing past him to pick them up. She brushed past him again on her way out, and she was certain she had felt his arms against her own and at least a bit of his pectoral. Oh God, now she was blushing! Heaven help her! Levi didn't seem to care that she saw him like that, he was nonchalant about it...again. As if it didn't matter to him or something. The bastard!

Hanji sat upon her bed and dropped her dirty clothing into a haphazard pile on the side. She only now registered that her heart was pounding and her head was light. She pressed a palm to her forehead and lay back, closing her tired eyes with a sigh. She wasn't going to admit it to anyone, especially Levi, but in that moment she came to realize that she was rather attracted to the infuriating shorty. A fact that irked her immensely. "Of all the people..." she muttered to herself.

It's not as if she would ever act on such feelings. Besides, one could be attracted to someone without liking them. Couldn't they?

"Fold the clothes..." he suddenly said from behind the screen.

"I'll fold them in the morning!" she retorted, blush renewing when she heard the water slosh around in the tub as he got out. He was just rubbing it in now, intentionally or not. Looking at the screen did her no favors, as it was slightly sheer, at least enough to see his silhouette, and she bit her lip with a inward groan at her own ridiculously raunchy thoughts.

"No you won't." he said, coming out from behind the screen with just his pants on...again. His hair looked scruffy from toweling it, and it was all she could do to keep her gaze focused on the sheets beneath her feet to keep from peeking. "You'll just toss them into your bag again." he sighed, walking over and bending to pick up her clothing, and then starting to fold them.

"It's just going to be washed anyways." she deadpanned, sitting up straighter and frowning pointedly at him while he placed her clothing in a neat pile on her bed.

He paused and glanced at her, raising a brow, and then he slowly finished folding the shirt, maintaining eye contact while he finished his task. "It only takes a second." he finally said as he moved back to his bed.

"Stubborn." she muttered under her breath.

"I could say the same for you." he said, pulling his shirt back on before he got into bed.

"Fuck you." she hissed, tugging the blankets aside and shuffling beneath them.

"No thanks, you're not my type." he retorted.

 _'Son of a bitch!'_


	4. Chapter 4

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•

•

"You did well bandaging this, miss." the physician smiled at Isabel, all the while examining Hanji's arm. "The bone wasn't completely broken, just fractured, and it's setting well." he said as he gently pressed his fingers into the still-swollen skin.

Hanji flinched at the ministrations, it hurt, but not as badly as it had when she first broke it.

"I'd keep it on the splint, and in the sling for now, maybe two or three more weeks, and then you can have it out of the sling." he began to rewrap her arm, "If you weren't travelers I'd have you come back so I could examine it again." he said, "But just see another physician when the time comes, they'll tell you when to remove the splint."

Isabel helped him tie off the splint, and Hanji put the arm back into the sling herself. "Thank you, sir." the redhead procured a gold coin from her pocket.

"It's no trouble, miss." the physician took the coin with a warm smile.

"Come along, Hanji." Isabel helped Hanji off of the examination table and linked arms with her as they walked out. "Feels good to get you properly examined." she sighed, heading for the inn and their waiting horses. She had insisted on having a real doctor check on Hanji before they left town.

"Yeah, it is." Hanji agreed, ducking her head when she saw Levi waiting for them...with Farlan, but she was only focused on the shorty. She had decided she preferred sleeping in Isabel and Farlan's tent to the inns, as she was separated from Levi that way. As infuriating as he was, seeing him behind the changing screen had morphed her view of him. Granted, now she loathed him for _that_. She couldn't look at him without imagining his body and wondering what the rest of him looked like.

Hanji had to remind herself of her mother's words to her when she was younger.

 _"Never judge nor trust someone according to beauty, child." her mother had said in a soft voice, "Even devils can look like angels. Only believe in those who are worthy of your trust, those who have earned it."_

NowHanji knew Levi wasn't untrustworthy, and of _course_ he wasn't a devil, that was silly to think. But she knew better than to admire him simply for his looks. And besides, she would much rather kiss a _pig_ than be romantically involved with him. She snickered under her breath at that thought while she carefully mounted Chance. Levi seemed to be blissfully unaware of her detailed opinion for the most part, and she was glad he couldn't read minds. Though she didn't know whether he would either be flattered or insulted over her tumultuous inner feelings towards him.

Hanji noticed on the day's ride that he made it a point not to talk to her, or to avoid her gaze, and she very much appreciated it. After all, it helped her keep her mind off of that scandalous mental image of him. She decided to direct her thoughts to the scenery while they traveled. As the region they were traveling through was vastly different from her homeland in Macedonia.

The mountains were far more prominent for one, and she found they had traveled through many canyons on their journey. The only valleys or meadows they could find to spend the night in were slowly becoming few and far between. And she found they had spent most nights without the tents, as the thick forests made it difficult to set them up. Instead they would just use their bed rolls and lay positioned in a square around the campfire.

Tonight - however - one night after leaving the inn, they had the tents, a fact Hanji was most thankful for. And they had also managed to procure a tent for her, yet another fact she was thankful for.

Isabel had told her that they were only about a week's travel away from their home, where Mikasa was living. And Hanji was excited to finally meet the girl. Isabel had told her a lot more details about her younger sister as they traveled. She learned that Mikasa was a strong, beautiful young lady, that she was gentle, and that she was kind. From how Isabel spoke, Hanji knew she would come to think of the girl as yet another sister.

Hanji sighed, peering over at the stew they were boiling, hoping it was ready. She was starving after a long day of travel. Well, not _starving_ , but most definitely hungry.

"Hey, Hanji..." Isabel said, catching her attention.

"Yeah?" she turned to her friend with a small, expectant smile.

"There's a stream just down the hill, and since there's no more streams for the next few days...Levi _insists_ we bathe while we can." Isabel rolled her eyes and twirled her finger in a circle pointed at her forehead, indicating that Levi was a bit nuts. Hanji chuckled in agreement at that, "Anyway, Farlan and Levi already got their baths done earlier, so you and I will bathe before dinner is ready. I just wanted to let you know so you can get your stuff ready." Isabel informed her with a smile, settling back against a tree as she continued to sew a fur into a shawl in preparation for the winter months.

Hanji nodded, "Right." she stood and made her way to her pack (she had bought a proper pack to replace her cumbersome sack back in town). She prepared some clothes and pulled her soap out as well. She had some because Levi insisted they all had soap of their own. She supposed it was because he didn't want to have them all use the same soap. He was so germaphobic it was ridiculous - from her point of view - but by now she was pretty much used to it.

"I'll go get started then." she called to Isabel, ignoring Levi's glance as she walked past him.

"Oi! Wait for me!" Isabel scrambled to her feet, collecting her own clothing and soap and chasing after her.

•

•

Hanji had just finished her bath, and she tugged her shirt on as she walked back to the camp from the nearby river. Isabel was a quick, efficient bather, and she had finished a few minutes before Hanji. So she was left to finish up by herself. Not that she minded, in fact, she had insisted that Isabel go along. She was more than capable of taking care of herself.

She smiled at Isabel and Farlan when she entered camp, and she honestly felt rather good that evening. She was refreshed and revitalized after her bath, despite the fact that she still had some trouble washing herself with her handicap. The pair returned her smile briefly, but both looked rather anxious upon seeing her.

"What's wrong, you two?" Hanji asked, still rubbing a towel into her hair.

Isabel's gaze moved from Hanji to someplace (or someone) behind her, and she spun around to come face-to-face with Levi. She yelped and took a few steps backwards, nearly tripping over a log. His face was twisted into an expression that was a tumultuous mix between irritated and livid. Which was strange to her, as emotion was rare when it came to that man. "What are you staring at, Levi?" she demanded, temper flaring at the sight of him.

He said nothing for a moment, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply.

"Well what's the deal? I told you not to sneak up on me." she probed and scolded, straightening to her full height to make herself more imposing. It didn't work, obviously.

"I can't take it anymore." was all he said before he approached Hanji. She stumbled back two more steps and yelped when his hand locked around her wrist.

She didn't even realize he had picked her up until she was draped over his shoulder. "Ah?" she gasped, looking up at Isabel and Farlan's resigned faces. "Oi! Levi what the hell are you doing?! Put me down this instant! This is undignified!" she exclaimed, kicking her feet and pushing against his lower back with her good hand.

She looked desperately towards Isabel when she realized she couldn't maneuver her way out of Levi's iron grip. He was walking out of the camp, and they weren't doing anything, and she was absolutely terrified. "Isabel? Farlan? Oi! Someone get me away from him! Hello?! _Help?"_ she cried.

Neither of the two made a move, simply looking at one another with stifled grimaces. Isabel turned to her and mouthed the word: _sorry_. But they had obviously learnt long ago that there was no stopping Levi. At least, they knew that, Hanji was only just coming to realize that fact.

"I said _help me!"_ she screeched as the camp disappeared from her sight. She grit her teeth and grunted as she tried to wiggle out of his grip yet again. "Put. Me. _Down!"_ she emphasized her statement by repeatedly pounding her fist against his back. He didn't even flinch. She recognized the bubbling sound of the stream and paused, trying to look over her shoulder. "Is that-?"

Levi finally set her down and she blinked before she turned red with fury, "Levi, I demand to know what the fuck you're trying to-" she cut herself off out of shock. Gasping when he pulled her arm out of the sling, tugged her shirt over her head, and then tugged her pants down. She stayed frozen in place, and before she could register that she was already completely bare he was pushing her towards the river.

He pressed against her shoulders until she had plopped onto her rear in the water, and then he began to wet a bar of soap. By now she was finally coherent, and she gasped as she covered herself frantically. "What the... _fuck_ , Levi?!" she yelped, pulling her knees to her chest and looking over her shoulder at him. "What are you _doing?!"_

"Shut up." Levi used a tin cup to dump water on her head, where had he gotten that from? "I'm tired of your stink."

"That gives you no right to _strip me!"_ she hissed, tightening her hold over her meager breasts and pulling her knees in closer.

"It's nothing I haven't seen before." he sighed. She gasped indignantly and looked over her shoulder at him with mouth agape and cheeks flushed. Did that mean...? He didn't seem like the type - in her opinion that is - to be a man who slept around.

Levi noticed her flabbergasted expression and rolled his eyes, "I don't mean like _that_." he corrected her train of thought. "Perverted brain too." he added, as if writing another trait of hers down on some invisible list in his head.

"Then what the hell _do_ you mean?" Hanji demanded. "And _I_ am not perverse! Who's the _man_ washing a _naked_ _lady?"_ she scowled, waiting impatiently for a response.

Levi was silent, lathering the soap in her hair. She sighed and turned back around, seeing his silence as a refusal to answer her former question. And the silence gave her a moment to realize the not-so-subtle nuances of her situation. To be reluctantly honest with herself, it felt nice, to have his fingers threading through her hair and roughly massaging her scalp. It was like the days she spent in her home, when her maid bathed her.

And she was being bathed not by a maid, not by a woman, who had no way of intruding on her modesty. No. But by a _man._ A man who, just two nights ago, she had seen in nearly the same way. She felt a pulse of warmth spreading from her abdomen, and she rubbed her thumbs into her arms to distract herself from the new, strange feeling.

"To answer your question-" Levi began, and her form went still, her thoughts calming to allow her to listen to what he had to say. "-when I was younger, in the orphanage, baths were rare. And when we had them, they were usually cold by the time you got your turn." he explained, and she listened intently, her eyes slightly hooded over the glorious sensation of his fingers on her scalp.

"So...Isabel, Mikasa, Farlan, a few other kids and I would share. Over time - as we aged - we changed, of course. And as a result, I for one don't see it as scandalous to see one naked." he explained. Hanji nodded, taking in that new information and lowering her arms from her chest hesitantly. "Besides, you don't have much to show for anyways." he added quietly.

Hanji eyes widened, and she went red with embarrassment, "Oi...hey!" she exclaimed. He was saying she had small breasts, wasn't he? "I'll bet you don't have much to show for either, what with how short you are!" she retorted, crossing her arms and pursing her lips in a pout.

Levi's hands froze in her hair, "What did you just say?"

"Oh what?" she spun around to face him, never minding her nudity, "I'm not allowed to insult you? You've done it to _me_ plenty of times." she scowled.

Levi stared at her for a moment, and then scoffed again, "Touché." he conceded, surprisingly.

"And...I already know I'm meager...so you don't have to point it out." she sighed.

"I'll try to be more considerate." his tone was _dripping_ with sarcasm, but she accepted it as the most apology she would ever get.

"Good." she murmured.

She was surprised that she had been able to be so bold, mouthing off to him like that. And yet he didn't react beyond his usual, apathetic glare. She closed her eyes abruptly and sputtered when he dunked a cup of cold water over her head. She coughed and wiped at her eyes, and then he dumped another, and another.

She spit some sudsy water out of her mouth and wiped her hand over her face again. "Are you done?" she asked.

"No, you still need to wash your ass. I'm not going to do it for you." he said in disgust. "Also, there's your limbs, and...for fuck's sake! Don't you ever wash in the creases?" he asked as he cleaned her neck. That sensation was rather uncomfortable, and she cleared her throat a couple times when it felt like her airway was constricted. His hands quickly moved to her underarms, and she hesitantly laughed at that. "Shut up." he murmured.

"Well _sorry!_ It tickles! What did you expect?" Hanji defended. He simply moved his hands and the soap to her back. Of which hadn't been washed properly since she left her home. She shuffled in place when rough, calloused fingers against the soft planes of her back sent gooseflesh blooming along her skin. She bit back a hum of approval, cheeks burning for what she could assume would not be the last time tonight.

She was slightly disappointed when he stopped, despite herself, and she begrudgingly followed his lead when he had her turn around. He stared at her torso for a moment, and she was about to reprimand him for looking before he handed her the soap bar.

"I think you can handle that." he said, standing and crossing his arms while he waited.

Hanji agreed rather fully. She had been worried that he would actually wash her chest, at least he left her that much dignity. She also fleetingly wondered how she was already so casual with him seeing her naked. Then again, he'd only seen her chest, it wasn't as if he saw her maidenhood.

 _'And he never will.'_ she determined mentally, crossing her legs, ' _I'll see to that.'_

She clumsily managed it, washing her chest and stomach, and he gave her a slight nod of approval when she handed the bar back to him. "I'm sure you can do better. But that will do for now." he said, tossing more of the cold water on her chest to rid her of the soap. Hanji flinched and glared at him, as the water was pretty damn cold.

"Now-" he handed the bar back to her, "-wash your ass."

•

•

Hanji sat down on the log by the fire and hugged herself, her demeanor shy. She honestly needed some personal space after her experience earlier that evening. She curled her arms tighter around her chest when she felt Isabel's concerned gaze. And she turned away in embarrassment when Levi re-entered the camp. Now she was desperate to spend some time apart from him. At least they were going to be at their home soon. She was excited to finally be back in a house, with separate rooms, hopefully.

But, she didn't know _what_ to think of Levi anymore, to be honest. He kept on changing and confusing her whenever she had decided she felt a certain way about him. At first she had been scared of him, and she also felt as though she needed his trust and approval. Well, he had quickly worn her resolve down to a nub and made her lose her patience. And so she decided to change her approach and simply loathe him. Then he went and pulled those ridiculous stunts like asking her to pick up her clothing when he was only half-dressed or forcefully bathing her because she smelled.

Now she didn't know what to _feel_ around him besides embarrassment, and tentative admiration. In a nutshell, he was driving her crazy.

She subtly scooted further away when he sat next to her and began to scoop a bowl of stew out for himself. Hanji peeked at him through her wet, unruly locks and observed quietly. Amongst her embarrassment, she was starting to feel rather strange when she looked at him now. Like her heart was pounding faster, like her head was light, or like her stomach was buzzing with butterflies. If she thought carefully about it, he made her feel ill. Like she had a flu.

Isabel suddenly came into her line of vision, and Hanji didn't miss the glare that the redhead sent her brother's way. "Here." she handed her a bowl of stew with a desperate, apologetic smile.

Hanji blinked at her and looked down at the bowl, her stomach constricted at the sight (or was it her thoughts?) and she grimaced. "I'm not very hungry." she murmured. Isabel's face fell most noticeably, and her gaze turned to her brother, who stared at Hanji in curiosity. Hanji tugged her light jacket around herself and stood, "I think I'm going to sleep, I don't feel very good." she said, glancing once more at Levi, if only for a second.

She noted that he returned her gaze, and he looked concerned. Perhaps he was worried he was the cause for her behavior.

 _'Good. Let_ him _worry about something for once.'_ she told herself.

He would be right if he thought she was upset with him, but not in the regard he was probably thinking of. She wasn't trying to avoid him because of the bath. She was a little worried herself, over what she was starting to feel every time she looked at that man.

How long had she been traveling with them? Maybe two weeks?

Her stomach dropped again as she sat down on her sleeping bag inside her new tent and rubbed her eyes. She pondered if she should leave after her arm healed, but then Isabel's promise to teach her how to shoot a bow came back to her and she groaned in frustration.

Hanji didn't like what she was starting to feel, and she feared it was something more than what it seemed. Something she had only ever felt once, and that was for her mother, in a different way, on a far more novice scale. If what she had read in fictional stories was true...she felt she should talk to those authors about their portrayal of the sensation. It was overly romanticized and far less painful in stories, it would seem. Or say least it was in her case. And she didn't want to accept it. She didn't want to fall, not for _him_ at least.

She sighed as she slipped into her sleeping bag and closed her tired, aching eyes. Longing for sleep. She didn't want to think about it anymore tonight. But her wish wasn't granted, as Isabel walked through the tent flap only seconds later. "Hanji? What's wrong?" she asked.

Hanji huffed in protest, she didn't want to _talk_ , didn't want to _think_ , she just wanted to _sleep_. "I'm tired...and I said I didn't feel good." she muttered.

"Does it have anything to do with Levi? You know we would have stopped him if we could but he's not exactly an easy one to argue with." Isabel hastily explained.

"No, no...it's not that. I'm just not hungry, and I don't feel well. Simple as that." Hanji opened one eye to peer at Isabel.

Isabel sat back on her haunches and hummed, placing a hand on her forehead, "You don't have a fever. Are you sure you're sick?"

"I think I ate something bad, just let me sleep, Isabel." Hanji rolled over and shut herself off from the impending conversation.

Isabel stayed silent for a time, and the atmosphere quickly grew tense. Hanji could almost _feel_ her deciding whether or not to press the conversation. But Isabel soon sighed, and she heard her shift to stand up, "Alright. Come and eat if you get hungry." she said before leaving.

Hanji sighed when she finally left, she didn't like being rude, but she just wanted to be alone for a while. Levi was completely dominating her mind, and she wanted to be able to think of something other than him. Especially after the bath. What on earth had gotten into his head? Why not just say that she wasn't washing herself well enough and let her fix the problem herself?

She didn't understand him, and she was certain she never would. It's not as if she didn't want to, though, she already bonded so well with Isabel and Farlan. She had wanted to bond with him too, but now she wasn't so sure it'd be good for her. He wasn't necessarily easy to get along with, and he made her feel so strange, conflicted... _confused._ She shook her head and rubbed at her eyes again, attempting to alleviate her sudden headache.

Hanji sighed deeply and let her thoughts drift, falling into subconsciousness. Her sleep was not plagued by dreams, but she was restless despite that fact.

•

•

"What the hell were you _thinking?"_ Isabel hissed at Levi, who blinked in disinterest. "I think you've traumatized her, she's acting all strange and distant. She practically told me to shut up. She _never_ behaves like this!" she gestured wildly to the tent pitched between her's and Levi's

Levi raised a brow at her, "It's not my problem, besides, she didn't seem to care much when I was washing her. And she's been acting bitchy to _me_ since I met her. It's nothing new." he said dismissively.

"She hasn't-ugh! She isn't being _'bitchy'_!" Isabel sighed, exasperated, "She is legitimately upset! Now I don't want you touching her again. She doesn't need anymore of your germaphobic nonsense. You're lucky she didn't have a knife or something on her the first time, she might have hurt you, you know."

"Oh please..." Levi scoffed in amusement, "Whatever. If she washes herself properly next time I'll be happy never to lay another finger on her in my life." Levi ran a hand through his hair and stood, "You know I wouldn't have done anything if she would just clean herself properly."

"She's got a fucking _broken arm! And_ we're on the move, Levi." Isabel sighed again, pressing her forefingers to her brow, "What did you expect from her?"

Levi shrugged, "Like I said, it's not my problem." he brushed his pants off and began to make for his tent, "Get some sleep, we'll be traveling through the pass tomorrow." he said, ducking behind the canvas flaps.

Isabel frowned, "Right." she murmured, sitting down on one of the logs they were using for seats. Her expression turned into a strained smile when Farlan sat beside her. "I really wish those two would just get along." she said, looking forlornly at the tents.

"They're not that bad, actually." Farlan said, and she looked at him as if he's grown a second head. "Considering..." he added.

"Not that bad?! He's always insulting her and she's always getting angry or upset when he's around. I just don't think they work well together. It makes _me_ upset, because I like Hanji, she's a great girl, and I want her to stay with us. But if Levi keeps doing this shit she'll want to leave in the future." Isabel rubbed at her temples and leaned into her husband. "And then with the bath..." she groaned, "Good Lord. I thought she was washing well enough, I can't _believe_ he did that to her. Poor Hanji." she lamented.

"Mhmm." Farlan hummed with a smile, poor Hanji indeed. However, he could see there was more to those two than initially met the eye. There was no doubt in his mind that this girl had at least a smidgen of feelings for his brother-in-law. Or at least a strong attraction. He could see it in how she behaved.

She became _so_ frustrated whenever Levi didn't pay attention to her, or angry when he said the wrong things. And just now, before she claimed to be ill, she was admiring him, he could see it in her eyes. If anything, Levi administering a bath was nothing but _good_ for their developing relationship.

Farlan also understood how she might be feeling. After all, he knew that in the beginning it kind of hurts if you don't understand what it is you're experiencing. He remembered how he used to feel when he thought of Isabel, or when she looked at him with that bright, energetic smile of hers. There was no doubt in his mind - once he deciphered what he was feeling - that he was going to marry that girl. It just took him a while.

He hoped Hanji wouldn't have to wait as long as he did before she sorted her own feelings. And if she was lucky, Levi would come around soon too. Granted, she would likely regard her feelings as a simple attraction for now, like he did.

He'd seen how Levi acted as well, he wasn't himself lately around her. Granted, he was still a short, quiet, (mostly) emotionless germaphobic, but he had changed, ever so slightly. When Hanji was around he tended to send subtle glances her way, observe her when she was riding...he would even help her down from the horse sometimes. And just now, with dinner, he had seen the foreign concern in his brother-in-law's eyes.

Farlan suspected that Levi was interested in her too, but he didn't really seem to want to admit it to himself. It was why he had taken to privately teasing him over her: he got such blatant reactions from the man. He had (naturally) teased him about women in the past, and he barely ever reacted to his insinuations at all. But with Hanji...he had to snicker to himself over it sometimes.

The man would always turn bright red and fiercely brush off the innuendos and implications. While it was enormously entertaining for Farlan, it also raised the question: why would Hanji be an exception?

"They are getting along in their own way, Isy." he sighed, smiling softly to himself. He figured to himself that his clueless trio of friends would probably realize exactly where this was all going before winter was over.

"It's not a good way." she mumbled, standing and offering him a hand. "Help me move our tent away from Hanji's, I am in dire need of some _stress_ _relief_ right now." she implied, giving him a pointed look he understood all too well.

He grinned and stood, "Fine by me."

"Let's put it next to Levi's."

"Isabel-"

"I'm kidding!"

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **Next time: cue boring filler...and by that I mean travel...and then: Mikasa!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Mailbag:**

 **bustercleel:**

 **Thanks for reviewing! I hope this chapter meets your satisfaction. ^^**

 **As a summary: Hanji gets over-emotional, and meet Mikasa!**

•

•

It was chilly, that much could be said when Hanji woke up in the morning. Summer was finally releasing its grip on the earth and going to sleep, allowing fall to awaken and descend on them with drying, crinkling leaves and cold breezes. And lifting her blanket revealed that her monthly bleed had also decided to descend upon her last night.

She blinked, considering her rampant emotions the night before, _'Well that explains not feeling well...'_ she shrugged, pawning everything _else_ she had felt off on her unstable condition as well. Not exactly a wise decision, seeing as her hormonal change was not the cause.

She changed accordingly, pulling her linens from her pack and gingerly wrapping them snug around her waist and between her thighs before she pulled her clean pants on. A task that proved to be two times as difficult with just one hand. She bundled up her stained sleep pants afterwards and tucked them in the space her linens had occupied. She'd have to ask Isabel for an extra pair of linens before the day was out, if it was like her usual flow.

She slipped her jacket on and began packing her tent. Starting by rolling her bed roll up, which had thankfully escaped being stained during the night. By the time she was finished, Isabel and Farlan were done with theirs, and had come over to help her with her tent.

"Thanks." she smiled warmly at them, giving Isabel a more pointed look and smiling brighter. She'd also have to apologize for being so short with her the night before. Isabel would definitely understand that she was emotional because of her bleed.

"Feeling better this morning?" the woman in question asked cautiously.

"For the most part." Hanji sighed, feeling her cramps start to come on.

"Hungry?"

Hanji nodded, "Very much so." she had skipped out on last night's dinner after all.

"Farlan will pack your things on Chance." Isabel said pointedly to Farlan, indicating that she wanted to speak to Hanji alone. Hanji giggled quietly at the man's expression before Isabel linked their arms and led her over to the renewed fire, scooping out a few quail eggs they had likely found before she woke. "Anything you'd like to talk about?" she prodded carefully.

Hanji saw right through her facade, she had obviously worried her the night before. "I'm okay, Isabel, really. I was just over-emotional and feeling ill because of my monthly." she explained frankly.

"Oh...of course." Isabel chuckled knowingly, "I myself don't get very many symptoms during mine, but Mikasa sure as hell does. She's like a viper, can't go near her for days." she quipped, laughing heartily.

Hanji laughed along with her, quite aware of how snappish and mean their symptoms could make them. "I know how she feels." she sighed, taking the tin plate that was offered and beginning to shovel the egg into her mouth ravenously.

"Don't be a pig."

Hanji nearly choked on her breakfast at the statement Levi made as he walked past. She cleared her throat and washed the mouthful down with water, sending a glare over her shoulder at the man. "Short-stack." she muttered under her breath in retort.

"Hanji!" Isabel scolded half-heartedly in a whisper before she chortled, giving her a few light raps on the back while she laughed.

"It's true!" Hanji grinned as she whispered back.

"I know." Isabel sighed, taking a bite of her food. "I gotta hand it to you, you're rather bold around him when you want to be." she smiled.

Hanji shrugged, "Not really." she muttered.

"And...I've got to clear my conscience, you really aren't mad about the bath?" Isabel prodded once more.

Hanji made to speak, but her own thoughts gave her pause. Was she upset? No...not over the bath at least. She was uncertain. Uncertain about how this man was starting to worm his way into her every thought. It was disconcerting, to say the least. But no, no she wasn't mad, despite how furious she may have been when it happened. She quickly came to realize that she wouldn't mind if it happened again.

"No...I'm not." she murmured.

•

•

Travel may have been fun in the beginning, but it was starting to morph into boredom for Hanji. Plus her aching abdomen wasn't helping matters much. She discreetly doubled over a couple times and huffed against Chance's neck during a few of her more painful cramps.

"Shit...ugh..." she sighed as her most recent cramp passed, panting as she stroked Chance's mane. "Why'd it have to be bad _this_ month?" she sat back with a pained groan, kneading her knuckles into her abdomen.

Levi lifted his hand up ahead and they all halted their horses, probably a break for lunch.

Hanji swung her leg over Chance's back...and flopped gracelessly onto her ass. "Damnit..." she hissed, waving away Farlan's helping hand when he rushed over to assist her, "It's okay, I just tripped." she said in dismissal.

"You sure you're alright?" Farlan still hoisted her up by her arms and pat her on the back.

"I'm fine, really." she offered him a smile and turned to her saddlebags to hide her embarrassment.

"If you say so." Farlan shrugged and moved to his own horse.

"We'll break for a few minutes." Levi said from up ahead, and Hanji glanced at him tentatively as he began to head her way. He approached her nonchalantly, clearing his throat, "Hanji."

She gulped and turned to face him, albeit not completely, her gaze was fixed on his shoulder. "Yes?"

"Listen carefully, Ehrmich's Pass is up ahead." Levi turned and pointed, and her eyes followed his movement, "There's no snow this time of year, but it can still be deadly if you make noise. So, we'll walk our horses through, easier to keep them from spooking should we pass a snake or such, and we'll refrain from making loud noises. Understood?" he said, turning back to her.

"Yes." she murmured, caught unprepared by his gaze. She hadn't meant to look at him, but now that she had she was somewhat entranced. It was but a moment, and his eyes were always so devoid of emotion...but she couldn't help but admire them for even just a second. They were different. Different from when she'd last looked at them, as if they had become more beautiful since then.

Since when had she thought his eyes were beautiful?

"Hopefully-" Levi turned away, speaking louder so his voice would carry and allow Isabel and Farlan to hear. Upon turning he broke the spell that had settled upon her, and she shook her head to snap herself out of it. "-we'll make it through before nightfall, otherwise we'll have to camp."

Isabel groaned, "Oh God I hope we don't have to camp here again."

Farlan exhaled loudly through his mouth and nodded.

"Why? What's wrong with camping in the pass?" Hanji led Chance up to them with an inquisitive glance at Isabel.

"It's just, you gotta be quiet-"

"Heaven knows you two have _no_ trouble being quiet." Levi said, back turned to them. "You were _extremely_ quiet last night."

"Oi!" Farlan chuckled.

"Fuck off, Levi. That's not what I meant." Isabel scoffed, but her amusement was evident on her face.

Hanji blinked, pursing her lips in confusion, "What does he mean?"

"Nothing, don't worry about it." Farlan chuckled, likely at her naivety.

"Anyway-" Isabel sighed, "-I meant to say that that's not the only issue. It's cold in the pass, and there aren't any trees around so campfires are next to impossible, then the bats like to hang around on the outcroppings we camp under and shit on us or our tents all night. It's not fun."

Hanji nodded, bringing her hand to her lips thoughtfully, "Why not just bring some firewood into the pass with us? To solve the temperature problem. And then the light from the fire would keep the bats away?" she suggested.

Isabel and Farlan glanced at one another in surprise. "I must say, Hanji, I never even thought of that." Farlan chuckled, and then he stooped to pick up a stick, waving it at her with a pointed smile.

Hanji smiled back bashfully, "I read it in a...book..." she quickly trailed off.

"You can _read?"_ Isabel questioned, intrigued.

"I...a-well, the orphanage was...given books sometimes, so I learned how to read from the headmistress." she wove her lie carefully, having realized that being able to read was typically a noble's trait.

Isabel raised her brows and nodded as she considered it, "That's good. I've heard it's hard to learn to read." she said, "Levi and Farlan learnt, but Mikasa and me didn't."

"Do you want me to teach the two of you?" Hanji asked, and Isabel's face twisted with excitement.

"You'd do that?"

Hanji shrugged, "Winter will be here soon I expect, and with my broken arm...it will give me something productive to do." she smiled warmly.

Isabel walked closer and gave her a hug, laughing ecstatically. "You're amazing." she sighed, pulling back to return to her horse's side.

Hanji gave her own sigh at the warmth budding within her chest. It felt good to be of some use, and to feel like part of a family again, however small it may be. She moved to mount Chance, then remembered they were meant to be walking. She groaned and pressed her forehead into the gelding's side. Her monthly hadn't let up, even with her distraction.

"Let's go." Levi called.

 _'Oh I'm gonna kill him.'_

•

•

"She lied again."

Farlan turned to Levi incredulously, "You're _still_ on about that?" he asked.

Levi blinked at him, "Have I ever been wrong before, Farlan?"

Farlan considered for a moment, "Well, I still think you're looking for things that aren't there, and seeing them because you want to." he sighed, looking at Hanji walking behind them.

"It was about where she learned to read..." Levi continued on.

"Oh come on now!" Farlan groaned.

"What's all the fuss about?" Isabel called up to them.

"Nothing, love." Farlan called back, "Just stubbed my toe."

"Clumsy oaf!" Isabel retorted teasingly.

"I'm your clumsy oaf."

Levi closed his eyes briefly and inhaled deeply to clear his head...oh who was he kidding! To keep his cool around that annoyingly incessant flirting! And to think he had been relieved over the two of them finally sorting things out...

His thoughts went back to Hanji. More and more of her story was starting to add up against her. More and more little white lies over time. Isabel and Farlan were too dense to see it. Too convinced by an innocent face. Granted, the girl was either a good actress, or truly innocent of his internal accusations. Because he was sometimes fooled by her ridiculously big, brown, doe eyes.

He cleared his throat at that thought. What a stupid notion. He even gave a scoff, to think that he would find her eyes to be cute...pretty... _maybe_ even attractive. It was out of the question.

As if to prove his own point to himself, he glanced over his shoulder, catching her eye. She blinked at having been caught watching, and her cheeks bloomed with pink. He turned away, gaze falling back to the gravelly canyon floor. He was late in turning, however, and the image of her blush was now stuck in a loop within his mind's eye.

 _'Her eyes aren't pretty.'_

He wasn't even convinced by his own thoughts.

•

•

"Oh _God..."_ Hanji sighed as she sat down, they were finally stopping, a few minutes after sunset, as they had been so close to the end of the pass. It wasn't worth staying in it to wait until morning when they were already practically through.

It had been a long walk, hours long, _and_ it was coupled with her monthly. Hanji just wanted to lay down on her stomach, prop her sore feet up on a soft, feathery pillow, and sleep for days. But of course, that was impossible. So she resolved herself to her less comfortable fate and stretched out on her stomach against the bedroll in her tent. Her sore, aching muscles practically cried out with relief, and she groaned as she relaxed.

"Hanji? We'll have supper soon." Isabel peeked in to tell her.

"Be-there...in-a-minute..." Hanji moaned against her bedroll, voice muffled near to the point of indiscernible.

"Need a tonic?" Isabel chuckled.

"That sounds heavenly." Hanji struggled to sit up, and she was met with a black flask thrust into her face. "What is it?" she asked as she took a swig...and promptly coughed, sputtering the drink all over her lap, throat burning.

"And they always do that." Isabel laughed, "You need to sip it, it's whiskey."

"Whiskey?!" Hanji squawked.

"Oh hush, you're a big girl, little bit of drink won't hurt. Might get you tipsy, but it'll also take the edge off." Isabel shrugged.

"But I thought you had a _real_ tonic!" Hanji cried, aghast.

"It _is_ a real tonic!" Isabel countered.

"No it's not!" Hanji said, starting to smile when she sensed this was turning into playful banter.

"Yes. Yes in fact it very much is, a real tonic that is." Isabel thrust it into her hands again.

"Isabel..."

Both women jumped and turned to the raven-haired man holding the tent flap open, "She doesn't need to drink that."

Hanji pursed her lips in a triumphant smirk and turned to Isabel, who scoffed, "But it's only for her womanly issues. Besides, what would _you_ know of it?"

Levi stepped inside and took the flask from Hanji's hand. She focused on the soft brush of his fingers against hers. Simply marveling at how it sent an electrifying shiver up her arm. "I know enough. And I know you get moody when you drink on your monthly. We don't need _two_ bitchy, whining women in the camp tonight."

 _And_ Hanji's annoyance towards him came rushing back with a vengeance.

"But _I'm_ not even on my monthly!"

"Still applies."

"Oh and I thought you actually cared..." Hanji drawled, rolling her eyes and catching his attention.

Levi turned to her with a raised brow, "I suppose it wouldn't make much of a difference, whether or not you _did_ take it..."

Isabel bit her lip and winced, and tensed when Hanji shot to her feet.

"That's it. That's it!" she laughed mirthlessly, pressing her fingers to her forehead and gritting her teeth before she turned on Levi, "I'm _sick_ and tired of your insults...your-your blatant disregard for the fact that I might actually have feelings!" she snapped, "Don't you fucking _dare_ roll your eyes at me, short-stack!" she pointed a quivering finger directly between his eyes, nearly touching him.

The motion she had reprimanded paused, and Isabel whistled loudly in a vain attempt to lighten the mood.

Levi's eyes narrowed, "And I-"

"-have absolutely no respect for anyone except yourself!" Hanji interrupted, eliciting a raised brow from him and an agape jaw from Isabel, "You...you call me names, you hardly consider me to be human, you invaded my privacy! Forcing a bath on me like that!" she accused, poking her finger against his chest.

"But you said you weren't mad about-" Isabel began.

"Not now, Isabel! I'm yelling." Hanji rounded on her briefly.

Isabel closed her mouth audibly.

Hanji turned to a bored, unimpressed Levi and took in a deep breath. "See! See, there you go again!" she pointed at his face, "You annoy the living hell out of me. You sit on this fucking high horse and act like you know all and everyone else is hardly worth your time! You treat me like a mangy dog sometimes."

"That's hardly true." he responded, finally.

"It is to me..." she murmured. "What else was I supposed to think of your opinion of me when you took me to that stream the other day?"

His brows twisted together, "What on earth are you talking about?"

"Just..." she bit her quivering lip to silence herself, holding a her hand up and closing her watery eyes. "Just go away, and leave me the fuck alone. Just don't...don't talk to me." she turned away from him and sat down, burying her face in her knees and quietly sobbing. Isabel went to comfort her, but the girl held a hand up, "Both of you...please."

"Hanji-"

"Best respect it, Isabel." Farlan had suddenly appeared, having nudged Levi aside and reached in to grasp her arm.

"But Farlan-"

"Just let her be for a bit." Farlan tugged her away, along with Levi.

"Oi!" the man in question protested.

"You and I might need to chat." Farlan gave him a pointed look of disapproval.

"I didn't even _do_ anything." Levi scoffed, crossing his arms.

"Isabel, give her her food in a moment, then just let her sort herself out for the night. She'll come to you for comfort tomorrow, most likely." he instructed his shaken wife.

"Alright." Isabel sighed.

"As for you, Levi-" Farlan gestured for the shorter man to follow him.

Levi rolled his eyes and followed his brother-in-law, mumbling to himself all the way. "And what, pray tell, do you need to talk to me about?" he asked.

Farlan leant against a large boulder, patting the rock beside him, "Why don't you sit first?" he said.

Levi gave a sigh and copied Farlan, pulling one knee up to prop his elbow upon. "Well?" he prodded.

"I just need to say, I think you need to tone it down around Hanji." Farlan crossed his arms and leant back, glancing up at the sky.

Levi raised a brow, "Tone it down?"

Farlan scoffed, shaking his head, "Listen, I know you're as dense as you are short-"

"I resent that. Hanji is rubbing off on you."

 _"-but_ , I honestly don't know how it could be more obvious." Farlan chuckled.

"Stop being cryptic and get to the point." Levi's voice was as close as it would probably ever be to a snarl.

"Oh no, I can't spoil it for you. Best if you figure it out yourself." Farlan held up his hands, "Point being, you are never this rude to people, despite their shortcomings."

"I'm not being _rude_ to her!" Levi threw his arms up in exasperation.

"From your point of view, perhaps." Farlan corrected with a flat look. "But what you said in that tent was rude, even for you. And she's younger than you, she doesn't know to take harsh words in stride." he explained. _"And_ she's on her bleed. You know how emotional women get."

Levi had to concede to that point. He _did_ know, although Isabel was rather passive, Mikasa was a living nightmare when she wanted to be. He had learned to curb his tongue around her during _her_ monthly. But as for Hanji...

He crossed his arms and nodded in consideration, "Alright, and what do you suggest I do?"

"Apologize."

"Fuck no." Levi scoffed.

 _"Apologize."_ Farlan repeated, "And then give her some space for a week or two. You'll see what I was talking about soon enough." he cleared his throat, "And be nice. It'll make a world of difference."

Levi gave him a glare, his eyes alone speaking volumes as to his loathing for Farlan's suggestion.

"Your relationship won't improve without effort, you know." Farlan said.

"What _relationship?_ There is literally nothing between us." Levi retorted, turning away from his friend to hide his reddening face.

"I didn't mean like that." Farlan fibbed, smirking slyly. What an oblivious idiot Levi was sometimes. It boggled his mind how such a wise person could be so stupid when it came to situations like this. "Just try it. It will also coax her into being _'nicer'_ to you." he added.

Levi looked over his shoulder, not exactly at him, but in his general direction, "I'll think about it." he said, "For now, I'll just give her space." he pushed off from the rock and headed towards the campfire.

"Stubborn ass." Farlan chuckled to himself, following shortly behind him.

•

•

When Hanji awoke the next morning she immediately pressed her face against her bedroll and muffled a frustrated yell. She could not _believe_ she had lost her cool the night before. Not that it mattered very much to her that she blew her top at Levi, he needed to be put in his place. No, she was upset over the fact that she had been snappish to Isabel again. The woman was only trying to help. But Hanji couldn't seem to keep her temper in check around that man.

And she was horribly embarrassed at her own actions. She didn't know how she was going to look any of them in the eye that morning. She got to her feet and grabbed a fresh linen she had swiped from Isabel before her outburst last night. She swapped them out, glancing at the tent's entrance every now and again to be sure she wasn't being watched. Having done it once already with one hand, it was a bit easier to change it today.

Upon finishing she balled up the soiled linen and pulled her pants back on. She stuffed the used cloth back into her pack and peered outside, stepping out hesitantly when she saw no one. She sat on the log by the fire, hugging herself and watching the glowing embers slowly die out, one by one. She must have fallen asleep earlier than she realized, as the sun had yet to breach the horizon, and dew still hung heavy on the greenery around camp.

At least she was on her own for a little while. She could collect her thoughts and rehearse her apology to Isabel. Poor thing, Hanji knew she had a temper, and she wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of it. If only Levi wasn't so damn irritating! And it didn't help that despite her apparent loathing for the man, he was also starting to make her heart ache with an unfamiliar longing. Nothing could ever out-place this feeling, when it came to the discomfort of it.

"You're up early."

She stiffened at the sound of his monotonous voice, glancing over the campfire to see him leaning against a tree on the opposite side of camp. "I could say the same for you." she said, tone even and steady.

"I'm on watch." he explained simply, pushing off from the tree and sitting across from her next to the dying fire.

She hummed in acknowledgment and held her chilling fingers out to the warmth of the coals. He had a habit of doing that, didn't he? Just appearing before her out of the blue. Though, on the plus side, he didn't seem fazed by her presence at all. Obviously, her outburst had no effect on him the night before.

 _'Figures.'_ she sighed to herself.

Of course it didn't. Because he didn't care...he probably hadn't ever cared, since the moment she arrived in the camp.

Why did that thought make her chest ache?

"Apparently-" he suddenly began, catching her attention, "-according to Farlan, I'm an ass and I owe you an apology." his chin was propped against his fist, and his free hand was poking at the fire with a long stick.

"What?" she mumbled.

"While I would argue and say you were out of line as well, careful consideration also leads me to understand that it _was_ wrong of me to insult you like that." he continued, glancing up at her to observe her reaction, most likely.

She opened and closed her mouth like a fish out of water. At a complete and utter loss for words, she could only stare at him in return. He raised a brow, as if expecting something in return from her. And he was right, she did speak slightly out of turn the night before.

 _'Not as badly as he did...'_ she assured herself in her head.

"I...well, thank you. For apologizing. At least, as much as I could expect you to." she added with a brief chuckle, "And, I'm sorry for...you know." she blushed, retreating beneath the curtain of her loose hair, "I didn't mean it, by the way...with the bath. I actually kind of appreciated it." she tweaked the fabric of her pants with her good hand, glancing up at him through her lashes.

Levi gave a single nod, "Good, and I suppose I'll give you a forewarning, you're getting another bath when we get home."

She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes, before letting out a bark of a laugh and nodding in acceptance to her inevitable fate, "I guess I could expect no less." she sighed, a few more giggles escaping her lips.

He stood and looked towards the horizon, estimating the time, "I'm going to wake Farlan and Isabel. Best pack up, we head out in an hour."

She watched him walk off, her mind slowly registering what had just happened. No insults on either of their behalves, no yelling or irritation. They actually sat down like adults and had a decent, enjoyable conversation. And...he apologized. He actually _apologized_. She didn't know if that should result in a feeling of triumph or happiness on her part. But it didn't feel like either of those emotions.

She felt that same warmth she felt yesterday in her chest, but this time it was deeper, more intense. Warmth flooding her every vein and causing her cheeks to bloom with color. If she had to name it...she wouldn't, because what comes to mind isn't a word she feels comfortable applying to him yet. So she'll cut corners and say it's relief. Despite how big of a lie that is.

•

•

They found the tiniest trickle of a stream, two days down the line. It was nowhere near big enough for bathing, but just enough to water both them and the horses. They were close to their final destination now, and would arrive any day now. Hanji cupped some of the cold water and rubbed into the nape of her neck, sighing as it chased away the intense heat of the day. Summer had been promising to recede for the past week, but had also decided to leave them with a parting gift.

She glanced up at Isabel and smiled. She had asked for her apology for yelling the night before, and the older woman was all to eager to accept it. And upon telling her of her brother's half-hearted (but still valid) apology, she had gone and hugged her brother. A gesture he seemed somewhat loathe to receive, but had accepted from her nonetheless.

Isabel smiled at her from her seat atop her horse, "Almost home." she sighed, slouching dreamily, "I can't wait until we get there. It's so very lovely, Hanji."

"Why would you want to leave it, then?" Hanji asked, patting Chance on the snout.

Isabel tilted her head curiously, "What do you mean?"

"You keep talking about saving enough money to have your own land..." Hanji supplied.

"Oh!" Isabel chuckled, "No, I guess you misunderstood. We don't own the land we're on, but we are going to buy it from the Lord who owns it. We made the deal about five years back. In exchange for our yearly payments he allows our sister to live there. This might be our last payment. And then we'll own the land." she explained.

"Oh, I see." Hanji mulled that new information over in her head.

"I've just been bemoaning it all this time because we only have the rights for Mikasa to be there. We can't build a house of our own yet, Farlan, Levi and I." Isabel pressed her forehead against her steed's neck and sighed, "But still!" she shot straight up again and startled both Hanji and Chance, "He's a rather easygoing Lord. And very generous to even consider letting us give payment over time. Most Lords would turn you away if you didn't pay upfront." she explained.

"Is that so?" Hanji bit her lip and mounted her horse. She knew that well enough, and had been witness to many a poor peasant being turned away by her father out of lack of money.

"Yeah, perhaps you'll meet him. He should come by a few weeks from now to collect." Isabel nudged her heels against her mare's flank and turned the steed to where Farlan and Levi were waiting.

"That'd be nice." Hanji said, internally conflicted...would a Lord recognize her this far away from Macedonia?

" _Finally_ ready?" Farlan asked, urging his horse into a walk.

"Oi! Misty was thirsty." Isabel gestured to the mare she was riding, " _And_ we were filling up your canteens. You're welcome." Isabel chastised sarcastically, tossing his canteen at him.

Farlan fumbled momentarily, but he caught the canteen with a laugh, "Thanks, Isy." he said.

"Won't be doing it again." she said with a snobby up-tilt of her head.

Levi scoffed and pressed his horse a little harder, riding ahead, and Farlan took up the rear. Isabel and Hanji ride side by side in the middle, as they usually did. The ride was long, as per the norm, and they were all yawning by the time the sun was nearing the horizon. And when we say all, that excludes Levi. But the squad had yet to stop, as Levi hadn't signaled for them to. So they continued on for more than an hour after sunset.

"Why aren't we stopping?" Hanji asked Isabel, who was brimming with excitement.

"Because we're close, of course!" she clasped her hands together and sighed, "Almost there!" she squealed to herself.

Hanji chuckled and looked up at the sky, marveling at how bright the stars were without a campfire to dull them. In fact, the sky was bright enough that the meadow their horses trudged through was bathed in a soft sheen of blue. It was truly gorgeous. She could only imagine how lovely this land was during the early morning hours, if it was so beautiful by night.

Isabel's horse broke into a gallop, and Hanji was startled out of her stargazing as she sped away. She was followed by a laughing Farlan, and Hanji gave Chance a light kick to catch up with Levi. Whom had only spurred his horse into a light canter. The redhead's destination was soon clear. A moderately large log cabin was sitting just around the cusp of thick trees ahead. And a lake sat only so many meters away from it, glistening in the moonlight and reflecting the constellations.

Hanji came to a slow stop by the now-riderless horses and watched as Isabel knocked at the door. Levi dismounted, and she followed his lead, tying Chance's reins to the post built there for that very purpose.

"Isabel!" a soft voice exclaimed upon the opening of the door. And Hanji's lips twisted into a smile at the sight of the raven-haired girl tackling Isabel with a hug. She observed with interest how remarkably similar the girl was to Levi in terms of features. Although her eyes were slightly more slanted. In terms of height, she was rivaling Isabel, and her hair trailed down her back in a long, thick braid.

"I've missed you so, _so_ much!" Isabel chuckled, pulling back from her hug and holding Mikasa at arms length, "Look how tall you are! You're gonna pass me up soon." she pat her sister on the head, leaning in to place a kiss on her forehead.

Mikasa giggled and turned to Farlan for his offered hug, "It's so good to see you, Uncle." she said as he pulled away.

"Likewise." Farlan said with a smile.

"And Levi!" Mikasa leapt at her older brother and nearly made him fall over with the force of her assault.

"Damnit, Mikasa." Levi gave the lightest hum of a laugh, "You've been working on your sparring, haven't you?"

Mikasa pulled back with a nod, "Yep! I work on it every day."

"Beat Jaeger up every time, no doubt." Levi smirked.

"Oh Levi." Mikasa socked him in the shoulder, "As a matter of fact, I...do...who's this?" the girl had noticed Hanji, and she stepped around her brother to eye her curiously.

"Hanji." the woman in question held out her good hand to greet the younger girl.

Mikasa shook it, tilting her head to the side curiously, "Nice to meet you. But I must say, they've never brought someone home before." she ducked her head sheepishly, "I wasn't prepared for company." she gestured to her sleep-gown.

Hanji laughed, kneeling to hoist her pack over her shoulder, "I don't mind." she said as she followed the girl inside. As she entered the cabin a lovely, savory scent invaded her senses, and she assumed food had been cooking for some time. "I expect I'll get used to seeing most everybody in their sleepwear anyways."

Mikasa smiled, "I like you." she said, leading Hanji along while the rest of their group gathered in the living room. "You've got a very inviting, positive presence."

Hanji returned her smile, "Why thank you." Mikasa gave a nod before heading down the hall and leaving Hanji to observe the house.

Upon entering one would be greeted by a few cushy chairs and a couch, along with a fireplace in the wall on the left. And on the right was a cooking oven and a pump-fed sink, along with a few cupboards and a table with wooden chairs to sit upon. Then there was a hall, down the very middle of the wall on the far side of the cabin. Down which were three rooms, and then there was a staircase that led above the hall entrance to a second floor. Perhaps a loft. Overall, it wasn't too big, but not too small, a very cozy, warm cabin. It made Hanji feel at home immediately.

Granted she didn't know her way around, or where she was meant to sleep, so she simply stood there where Mikasa left her. She glanced at Isabel and Farlan, whom were lounging on the couch and didn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. Then she turned to the kitchen and found no one there. But Levi was entering a room down the corridor, so she followed him.

"Hey Levi-" she cut herself off with an inward groan of annoyance at her inability to assess a situation.

Levi paused, his hands still in the sleeves of his shirt, and raised a brow at her in expectation, "Yes?"

Hanji gulped, willing her eyes to stay focused on his own, a futile battle, as they constantly attempted to sweep the attractive plane of his torso. "I-um, was just wondering where I should sleep?" she was losing the battle to keep her gaze where it should be, so she directed it to the floor and scuffed the toe of her boot along the wooden board there.

"I'd say one of the rooms upstairs, but I don't really care. You should ask Mikasa." he folded his shirt and moved to the door. She let forth a noise of protest when he pressed one hand to her sternum and pushed her out, surprisingly gentle. "If you'll excuse me..." he implied as he closed the door.

"Right." she blushed and turned on her heel to try and find Mikasa. Glancing into the room she had seen her enter moments before proved fruitful. Though she jumped at the sight of another young teenager in the bedroom, about the same age as Mikasa.

"Oh Hanji! Meet Armin. We met in the orphanage. He came to live with us after his grandpa passed on." she explained, gesturing to the most-obviously shy blonde sitting across from her on one of the two beds in the room.

"Hello." the boy greeted, waving a hand hesitantly. He was short, not as short as Levi, but still. And his face was almost baby-ish, what with his button nose and rounded features. His figure was rather scrawny, like he had never really filled out. And his hair was long enough to be pulled back into a tiny ponytail, though some of the shorter strands still framed his face. If Hanji had to describe him in one word, she would say he was adorable.

"Hello there, Armin." she greeted warmly, taking a step into the room.

"Mikasa's already told me your name." he smiled, shaking her offered hand.

"Well alrighty then." Hanji chuckled. "Erm, Mikasa, Levi said I should ask you about where to sleep." she turned to the girl as she spoke.

Mikasa stood, "Right, we have a couple rooms upstairs, and there's the loft..." she took Hanji's good hand and led her out of the room, heading up the short staircase and across the loft, which overlooked the living room. It had a bed-like couch and a fur rug on the floor, a railing lining the floor so one wouldn't fall over the edge. The two bedrooms Mikasa had spoken of were on the left wall, and she opened the door to one of them.

"The other one is Isabel and Farlan's." Mikasa explained as she scrambled to light a match and the lamp in the room. "But this one is almost always unused...I mean, Eren uses it when he visits, but I can have him stay with Armin and me." she explained as she gestured for Hanji to enter.

"So are you and Armin..." Hanji asked, placing her pack down and turning to her with a pointed look, "You know?"

Mikasa paused, taking in her implication, and then barking out a laugh, "Oh no! No, he's like a brother to me." she chuckled. "What gave you that impression?"

Hanji shrugged, "I just assumed, cause you share a room." she mumbled.

"Well, as adorable as he is, I'm afraid Armin and I are very much platonic." Mikasa sighed mirthfully.

"I see, sorry for assuming." Hanji glanced around at the room now, observing the moderately-sized bed and the dresser beside it, along with the curtained window that viewed the lake.

"It's no problem. Oh, and I've had some stew cooking since early this morning, if you'd like some after you've unpacked." Mikasa said as she headed out, "I would presume you're hungry after such a long day." she added on her way down the stairs.

Hanji nodded despite the girl having gone. She took a turn on her heel and sighed at the warm homeliness of the room. She sat upon the bed and smoothed out the cotton of the blanket, smiling softly. She could easily get used to living here.

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **Next time, the sad truth of living with people. Lol. It gets difficult.**


	6. Chapter 6

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 **Guest:**

 **Thank you! And I don't plan on stopping anytime soon, despite how little reviews the story has here so far. On Ao3 it has a screaming fanbase though so I am very motivated to write lol.**

 **Last chapter of denial from these two, time for** ** _love_** **to start happening. Aww** ** _YIS!_**

•

•

Hanji descended the stairs, carefully, as her left arm being in a sling left no rails for her to grasp onto. Isabel and Farlan were still on the couch, asleep, by the look of it. Mikasa had scooped a couple bowls of stew out, setting them upon the table. "Want some then?" she asked when she saw Hanji, holding up another bowl.

Hanji nodded, "Yes please." she sat at the table and smiled warmly at the younger girl when the bowl of steaming stew was placed before her. "Thank you." she said.

Mikasa nodded, "Of course." she turned on her heel to head down the hall. Hanji heard her speak faintly, and then she returned with Armin in tow.

"Thanks, Mikasa." Armin said as he sat down across from Hanji.

Mikasa sat down herself, and started eating as well. "So, Hanji..." she began, stirring her food absentmindedly.

"Hmm?" Hanji hummed through a mouthful of stew.

"How is it that you came to join them?" she asked, eyes alight with blatant curiosity. Of course she would be curious, as the girl had said herself, her siblings had never brought someone home with them. Not that Hanji minded in the slightest.

She placed her spoon down and finished her current bite, clearing her throat before speaking. "Well, in honesty the story paints me out to be a klutz." she chuckled. "My horse got spooked, and I hit my head, got knocked off of him and broke my arm-" she lifted her splint to demonstrate her words. "-I probably shouldn't have walked about with head trauma, but I did anyway. And when I finally fell asleep, they found me with fever. Might not have woken if they didn't." she grimaced at that.

"Really?" Armin had leant closer, chin propped upon his fist.

"Yeah. But long story short: Isabel is responsible for my staying, she insisted I do so until my arm heals." Hanji chuckled, "And probably a while after that too, I don't really have anywhere to go and it will be snow-season before I can travel." she explained.

Mikasa nodded, "Well I assumed something along those lines. Isabel has a penchant for saving injured creatures - not that I mean to say _you_ are a creature." she chuckled, and then smiled in fondness, glancing over at her sleeping sister.

"That sounds like her, from what I've come to know about Isabel so far, that is." Hanji turned in her seat to look at the redhead, likely drooling on Farlan from how her cheek was pressed up against the dozing man's chest.

"Once-" Mikasa began, "-when we were younger - I was barely even six years of age - she saved a songbird with a broken wing, Farlan helped her with it. I think the bird stayed with us even after we left the orphanage." she pursed her lips thoughtfully, "Or maybe that was the pigeon?"

"He died a while back." Armin corrected, "It was a pretty bird, that much I can remember." he shrugged. "We did rescue a dog once but the Matron turned him loose cause she didn't want us having him."

"Yeah, I was very sad about that, but Isabel was even more distraught." she sighed, "Oh! We do have a cat she rescued last year. She stays in the barn most days, keeps the mice and rats out of the grain, and the house." Mikasa said, "I'll show her to you tomorrow, she's not the friendliest but she likes Levi." she sniggered.

Hanji hummed with a smile, "And, let me guess, he _doesn't_ like her?" she mused.

Mikasa mulled it over, "I think he does, actually. Caught him petting her a few times." she shrugged.

Hanji nodded, looking over her shoulder once more, "Have they eaten yet?" she asked, gesturing to Farlan and Isabel.

Mikasa waved a hand dismissively, "Nah. They'll sleep all night and then pester me for an early breakfast in the morning. It's like a homecoming ritual or something, they do it every time they get back." she chuckled.

Hanji raised a brow, giving her own slight chuckle and shaking her head. "Do you think it's on purpose?"

Mikasa shrugged, "Who can tell? Personally I don't think so."

Hanji hummed in amusement, turning back to her food. Despite the mouth-watering stew before her, she was more than eager to join her companions in sleep. And that's what she did, after devouring her food of course, and thanking Mikasa for making it. She headed up to her newly assigned room and tugged the bed covers back. Dropping her pants without much care, and any other piece of clothing she deemed unworthy to join her in sleep.

She sighed contently after tucking the blanket under her chin, a slight smile painted onto her lips as she drifted off.

•

•

She was awoken abruptly by a towel to the face, and she snorted in a most un-ladylike fashion as she lifted her head in confusion. She blinked, vision blurry from sleep, and she was momentarily confused until she remembered where she was. Rubbing her bleary eyes, she glanced up at her attacker and her stomach swooped momentarily. He had obviously just finished with a bath, but was it really necessary for him to walk in here all shirtless and hair dripping like that? It was as if he was _trying_ to make her want him.

But if that was the case, it was working. That she couldn't deny. Despite having seen him shirtless before, her eyes still decided to rake appreciatively over his body yet again. She glanced up at his face and sat up, rubbing the opposite eye as she waited for an explanation for her rude (yet not entirely unpleasant) awakening.

"I _did_ forewarn you about that bath." he said in response to her expectant face, gesturing to the towel.

She paused in recollection, and then groaned and flopped back onto the pillow, "Can't it wait an hour? The sun isn't even up." she complained.

"I'll hoist you over my shoulder again." he threatened.

She scoffed and chuckled, shamelessly swinging her bare legs out from under the blanket and standing with an exaggerated stretch. Only wearing her night shirt and linens, which were likely soiled. "Alright, alright." she sighed, picking up the towel and holding out her good hand, "I'm too tired for the stairs though, I might trip and break my other arm, so you might as well hoist me up anyway."

He gave a nod and scooped her up, the next thing she knew he had her draped over his shoulder. She bit her lip and tried to focus on counting the floorboards rather than his arm flexing beneath her abdomen.

The descent down the stairs was a bit irksome, as her arm was jostled with each step. She grunted and hissed as he put her down, and she cradled her arm with soft coos of pain. "Be gentler next time." she murmured, patting her splinted arm.

He raised a brow, gesturing for her to follow.

She glanced at the couch, noting that Isabel and Farlan were still asleep, but beginning to stir. And she tugged her night shirt down when she remembered she hadn't thought to bring clothes. He opened the third door on the left side of the hall, across from Mikasa and Armin's and beside his. Inside there was a well-sized iron tub, definitely big enough for two people. There was a pump on one end, and a ledge on the other to sit on.

She took her turn to raise a brow at him, obviously they had spent a pretty penny on a tub that big and that well made. It definitely wasn't as luxurious as the tub she had had back home. Not made of marble and shining tile, or anything of the like, but still luxurious nonetheless. He really was just insane about cleanliness wasn't he?

 _'We've most certainly already established that...'_ she thought to herself.

"Go on then." he gestured to the pre-pumped water in the tub.

"I'm still on my bleed, you know." she murmured, glancing self-consciously to the side.

"So?"

She turned to him with a scowl, begrudgingly reaching under her shirt to unwrap her linen. Granted she was on her last day or so, but still...

He shifted his weight onto one foot and waited - surprisingly patiently - while she fumbled around and finally dropped the crumpled linen in a heap on the floor. At which point he offered his services in undressing her further and tugged her shirt and sling over her head. She gingerly tucked her splinted arm back under her breast, and used her free hand to self-consciously cover herself despite how unnecessary it may have been.

She had to brace her arm against the side of the tub to step into the surprisingly warm water. She sank to her knees in it, clutching the rim of the tub to her chest and propping her arm up upon it as she awaited washing. As if on cue, a cup of water was dunked over her head, leaving her sputtering and wiping her eyes. "Bit of warning?" she glanced over at him with a frown.

He looked her in the eye as he slowly scooped up another cup of water...and then poured it over her head.

She coughed and sputtered, groaning as she rested her chin against her good arm, "Should have seen that coming." she mumbled.

"Turn around so I can wash your hair." he instructed.

"Right." she exhaled, spinning in place and reaching her bad arm back tentatively to prop it back up on the tub wall.

God, he was good at that!

She leant back into his touch, a light hum rumbling in her throat at the delightful sensation of rough fingers against her itchy scalp.

He paused, fingers twitching, "Don't make that noise." he said.

She opened her eyes and blinked, wondering what he meant...and then she smirked, "What noise?"

"Hanji." his tone was thick with warning and an emotion she didn't recognize.

She gave a ridiculously loud, obscene, exaggerated moan and leaned back more aggressively into his touch. Sloshing water over the edge and chuckling as he yanked his hands back with a scowl. He even shuffled back on his knees a few inches. She turned over in the tub and cackled at his expression. His scowl only deepened, and that in itself cause her to laugh harder, pressing her forehead against the tub so she could calm down and catch a breath.

"Enjoying yourself?" he sighed.

"Mhmm-mm." she giggled, sitting up again and turning around expectantly. Silence ensued, and she peered over her shoulder to meet his gaze, "Well?" she prodded.

His frown deepened.

She chuckled, "I promise I won't make noises, I just wanted to see your face."

"Of course, I'm sure it was hilarious." he conceded, burying his fingers back into her frothy hair. He rolled them in soothing circles against her scalp, short fingernails scraping lightly.

She bit her appreciative sigh back.

•

•

While he still had his doubts about this girl, she was starting to get to him. And he didn't like that. He didn't like that at all. And he especially didn't like how his body reacted to her during that bath. It was shocking, honestly, that the soft sigh she emitted could actually be arousing. It was why he asked her to stop, but then she had to go and make it worse...

He'd had to pull away so he could _calm down._

Watching her now, on a walk down by the lake with his sisters, he gave a sigh and dragged a hand across his face. While she was still familiar, and while she had told a few fibs during their travels, he had resolved to put it on the back burner for now. Farlan was right about her meaning no harm, he knew that, he just wanted to be sure of it before he trusted her.

Granted, he didn't trust her even now, not completely. Not until she told the truth. But he was finally willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. For reasons he neither wanted to explore or admit.

"You like her, don't you?"

Levi turned from the window and raised a brow at Armin, who had taken the seat across from him and begun sketching in his notebook. "What?" he asked, voice laced with incredulity.

Armin smiled, looking up from his paper, "You have the same look in your eye that Eren does when he looks at Mikasa." he explained.

Levi scoffed, then blinked, "Are you saying Eren and Mikasa are-"

"Yeah, no use denying it. But don't go beating him up like I know you want to." Armin chuckled, "Mikasa would kill you, for one, and Eren's already terrified of you. No need to cement it."

Levi scowled, "Stupid little shit." he murmured.

"Also, you changed the subject." Armin looked up at him with a knowing smile, "You really do like her, don't you?"

Levi stared at him for a moment, and then turned his gaze back towards the window, watching the girl in question struggle with a basket of wildflowers. While she was sometimes clumsy and often dirty, she had a deep, simple beauty about her, both in personality and appearance. It would - unfortunately for him - be a lie to say he didn't like her.

"She's pretty." he conceded, "But I've barely known her a month." he glanced back at the blonde for his response.

Armin shrugged, "That's still a decent amount of time to decide whether or not you're attracted to her." he went back to his drawing, "Besides, I didn't say you love her or anything, I only said you like her. There's a big difference."

Levi looked back outside, nodding slightly, "Perhaps you're right." he murmured.

Mikasa was thrusting that damn cat into Hanji's face, and he could practically hear the girl's coo as she scratched under the black cat's chin. He scoffed quietly, glancing at the abandoned book in his hand, only to look back outside. There was no shame in watching her for a while, after all.

Despite her broken arm (and the exception of early mornings), she moved about with a foreign grace that sometimes bewildered him. Considering how clumsy she could be at times, that is. Her posture was always so prim, her poise elegant, it was fascinating to observe. But it also caused one to wonder, as he and his companions had to learn decorum through trial and error. She behaved as though she were born with it in her blood.

It really did make him wonder...

•

•

Hanji had been at the cabin for nearly a week by now. It was such a simple, decent life, at least from what she had experienced so far, to live out in the mountains and by the lakes like this. She found she spent most afternoons sitting out in the surrounding meadows, wildflowers around her and the wind blowing the fresh scent of water up from the lake. It was most refreshing.

She had also removed her sling, and Isabel had said she would take her into town to see the doctor there about her arm. Mikasa had taken well to her, and followed her around like a puppy, wide-eyed and curious. She had also surprised Isabel by apparently learning to read with Armin whilst they had been away. So Isabel was her only real student in that regard.

While Hanji was patient over the matter, Isabel was easily irritated and frustrated, and their little sessions only lasted less than an hour. She was learning, granted, but it was a slow process. Not that Hanji would ever mind spending time around Isabel, nor how long she might be staying with them before the redhead finally caught on.

She didn't spend much time around Levi, though. At least, that had been the pattern of the past week she had been there. Except when he bathed her, and as of late, that would always be a strangely silent, somber affair. Intil they started the customary insults towards the end the event. She'd never admit it, of course, but she often looked forward to the baths. Maybe because of his calloused hands running over her spine and shoulders, caressing her scalp. Or maybe it was because she enjoyed toying with him: their tense, aggressive banter that always left her incredibly cross with him. Why she would enjoy that? She had no idea...she didn't like being cross.

Maybe it was just talking to him that she enjoyed? Just being near him?

She shook her head as she climbed into bed, tugging the blankets over her shoulder and nuzzling her nose against the pillow. Her attempts to bury what she was starting to feel every time she looked at him were proving to be in vain. And she was begrudgingly considering accepting the fact that she was hopelessly attracted to and possibly, maybe...just maybe, growing to like him.

She fell asleep soon after that thought.

•

•

Only to be awakened by someone sitting on her. She sat up with a yelp, throwing said person off of her and scaring the living daylights out of the both of them. Whoever it was...she didn't recognize their voice when they too gave a yelp and landed in a heap on the floor. It was a boy, that much she could garner from his voice. "Who are you?" she tugged the blankets up to her chest.

It was dark, as the candle hadn't been lit, and she could only see his silhouette on the floor, highlighted by the moon streaming in through the curtains. "Huh? I could ask you the same." he replied, "I...uh, usually sleep here."

Hanji tilted her head, remembering what Mikasa had said about this room, "You're Eren, aren't you?" she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and struck a match to light the lamp.

The boy and her both cringed at the sudden light, and she took a moment to observe him. He was about Mikasa's age, olive skin, as if he spent a lot of time in the sun. His scraggly brown hair was rather similar to her own in length, just a bit shorter. And bright, blue-green eyes observed her similarly.

"Yeah, that's me." he got to his feet and scratched his neck...he was taller than Levi. She observed that fact with a slight smirk.

She offered up her good hand, "I'm Hanji." she introduced, "Mikasa let me have this room, said she would have you stay with her and Armin when you come visit." she explained.

Eren shook her hand, nodding as he processed that information, "Right...um, nice to meet you. And sorry for...y'know."

"Sitting on me?" Hanji supplied, and the boy blushed in embarrassment, "That's alright, I've experienced far worse things than being sat on in the night." she stood, thankful that she had worn pants to bed this time.

Mikasa suddenly appeared in the doorway, "Eren!" she exclaimed, rushing him with a hug. Hanji grinned cheekily when she also kissed him, rather passionately.

She cleared her throat, scuffing her toe against the floorboard.

Mikasa pushed away from the blushing boy on reflex, turning a nice, bright red shade herself and tucking her hair behind her ear. "Oh, right...I see you two have met..." she murmured in embarrassment.

"Mhmm." Hanji hummed, a wicked smile on her face. "Should _I_ , perhaps, take the room with Armin downstairs?" she teased.

"What...Hanji!" Mikasa's ears and shoulders joined her face in a state of flushed red, and Eren covered his eyes.

"I'm only teasing, Mikasa." Hanji chuckled, "But really...if you ever need, I am capable of making myself scarce." she winked as she led them by the shoulders out of the room. A clunky, awkward task even with her splinted arm out of the sling.

"Y-you're assuming things!" Mikasa exclaimed.

"She's really... _not_..." Eren said with a shy smile.

"Eren!" Mikasa cried, aghast.

"Well it's true!" he defended.

"Yeah but she doesn't need to know that!"

Hanji cackled loudly, patting them upon their shoulders, "Come now, I won't tell a soul. Now off to bed." she gave them a gentle nudge as she ducked back into her room. Granted she may not _need_ to tell anyone, it was painfully obvious just how deep of a relationship those two likely had. Just from the look in their eyes.

She glanced at her bed with a contemplative hum. She was well awake now...so she shrugged and headed downstairs to the kitchen, fetching a bread roll from the counter and sitting at the table to eat it. Looking outside, she could see the sun would be up in perhaps an hour or so. Strange that the boy would travel here this early, but he probably lived close by, so she gave a mental shrug and swiped the crumbs from her snack off the table.

Footsteps from the hall caught her attention, and she glanced up to see Levi. He looked tired, bedraggled really, his usually perfect hair sticking up here and there and his shirt rumpled.

 _'He's adorable.'_ she thought to herself.

He blinked at the sight of her, running a hand through his hair and sighing, "I presume you're the one who made all the racket?" he sat across from her at the table and leaned heavily on his arms.

"Sorry." Hanji smiled sheepishly, "Me and Eren that is."

He nodded, "I assumed as much."

"Yeah...he sat on me." she added.

He chuckled. Actually, truly chuckled, and she stilled, her face and chest suddenly burning with a fierce blush. She didn't think she'd ever heard him laugh, and...well, add in his gravely, sleep-addled voice...

She gulped when he glanced at her, and the awkward eye contact lasted far longer than she wanted. He was glancing up and down her face, observing her features. At least she assumed he was. "What?" he inquired.

She jumped, tucking her hair behind her ear in embarrassment, "Huh?"

"You're blushing." he pointed out.

She felt her face darken farther, "I-I am?"

His face morphed into a deadpan, "I wouldn't say so if you weren't."

"Right." she murmured, hugging herself and looking down at her lap.

" _Why_ are you blushing?" he inquired.

She hid behind her hair, glancing up at him through her lashes, "No reason."

He raised a brow, "Don't lie." he said, pausing to consider her, "You were admiring me." it wasn't a question, he knew it to be a fact.

She recoiled softly, "N-no! Of course not!" she denied him fervently, albeit not even convinced of it herself. He had caught her red-handed...or red-faced rather. "Besides, so what if I was?" she mumbled.

"You were." he said with finality.

She gave a start when he stood, chair scraping against the floorboards as he did so. She leaned back in her chair when he approached her, hands planted against the back of her chair and the table. "What are you doing?" she murmured, caught off-guard at his proximity. She could see the deep, steel-blue of his irises, flecked with light grey. And oh-so-intense was his stare.

"Proving a point." he replied, voice a low rumble in his chest that sent a shiver down her spine. His gaze flickered down at her lips, and that motion alone had her breath hitching. Not to mention how he leaned closer, and her breath was stolen completely when his nose grazed hers. She didn't move, her grip on the arms of her chair left her knuckles white. He was holding her in a trance, everything around them seemed blurred. Ethereal and dreamlike.

He stayed where he was, eyes lidded and his breath fanning over her face. She hesitantly exhaled, through her mouth, and her voice shook as she managed to choke out a word: _"Levi...?"_

He blinked, as if breaking himself out of a trance of his own, pulling back just enough for her face to be in focus...and then he smirked. "You _do_ admire me." he said smugly as he pulled back entirely, straightening his back and placing a hand on his hip.

She went red, both in embarrassment and in fury over his actions, "Wha-I...how _dare_ you!" she abruptly stood, nearly smacking foreheads with him and inhaling to give him an earful. But he simply turned on his heel before she could speak and headed back to his room, waving casually over his shoulder.

She stomped her foot and crossed her arms, hissing lightly at the twinge in her broken arm.

What a...what an absolute _son of a bitch!_

She was about to go rap on his door just to yell at him, but upon a fleeting thought, her fury dissipated nearly as soon as it had emerged. He had been so close...so close to her, she had been able to see every individual eyelash, every beautiful detail of his eyes, the texture of his most-inviting lips...

Trembling fingers graced the side of her nose, trying to imitate his touch there. She'd be lying if she said she didn't want him to linger...didn't want him to lean just a little closer and see what his lips tasted like. Her entire body soon trembled, and she glanced towards his door, the quietest of gasps escaping her as she sat down again. Knees weak.

"Oh my God..." she whispered. She wasn't going to give the fluttering in her stomach, the rapid beating of her heart, and the hitch in her breath the luxury of a name. At least not yet. Despite her acceptance of her attraction to him, she was starting to realize that this was on another level.

Hanji didn't go back to bed that night...

•

•

Even _he_ knew it wasn't necessary for him to have gone so far. While he had only been trying to prove a point, he couldn't deny he was tempted to push his luck. Tempted to simply kiss the _living daylights_ out of that infuriating girl like his instincts were telling him to. Levi stopped his hand on its way to trace her phantom touch on his nose. A sigh escaped him, and he thunked his head back against his door, sliding down to a sit and running his hand over his face.

He had been _so_ close he could see the intricate details of her irises. The soft, cocoa-y and sugary color, highlighted with creamy flecks. And the highlights in her auburn-brown hair, and how her lips parted expectantly, her breath hitching and her lashes brushing her sun-tanned cheeks as she slowly blinked. It was surreal, an undeniably _beautiful_ sight...and he didn't want to think that.

But he did think that, he _was_ thinking that. And he knew then and there that there was nothing he could do to stop this. What they were starting to have together. Though what was developing between them didn't deserve a label from him yet...it would eventually. That much he could tell. And he suddenly understood what Farlan had been talking about nearly two weeks ago.

Levi didn't sleep for the remainder of that night.

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **Future chapters will have time jumps. And they will also have yummy Levihan...( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)**


	7. Chapter 7

**Mailbag:**

 **Seiren:**

 **Hehe! Why thank you. I suppose that means I have the pleasure of your attention on Ao3? It's nice to see you, in that case.**

 **Guest:**

 **I'm glad you liked it.**

 **Guest:**

 **I assume that means it was nice? Lol.**

 **Guest:**

 **Well that's awesome, I love it when a story gives me goosebumps.**

 **Now that that's done. Here's where the story starts to earn its rating. Just a little for now, but as we progress...lets just say, these two have a lot of sexual frustrations. Lol.**

 **Anywho, enjoy!**

•

•

~ _It was dark. Dark and the air muggy with heat. Not that she could ever care, not when her body was under such intense, tantalizing ministrations. She had never imagined sensations like this, and especially not from him...at least when she first met him, that is._

 _Her hands roamed the broad expanse of his shoulders, down the plane of his back and gripped at his skin when he provided friction against the apex of her thighs._ _A soft moan echoed in the room, and she ground back against him, desperate for more._ _His lips traversed the column of her neck, his touch barely even there, but enough to make her hum in encouragement. One hand gripped her hips, and she gasped as the other slipped between her legs, rubbing softly._

 _She bucked up into the touch, fingers scrambling for purchase anywhere on his skin. Just a little more and she could feel herself crashing over the edge. She could barely breathe at the sudden tensing of her muscles and release that had her back arching. It almost felt like falling...or maybe she_ was _falling? ~_

 _'Definitely falling.'_

"Ow! Shit!"

Hanji yelped as she hit the floor with a loud thump, the fall and impact waking her from her dramatic, feverish dream. She rolled from her bruised hip onto her back and stared up at the ceiling, panting as the pleasant spasms in her loins slowly ceased. The dream hadn't been real, of course. But - upon sitting up and looking at her bed - she determined that her climax was most definitely real. She had been straddling - or rather: grinding - against the corner of her mattress in her sleep. The slight wetness upon the sheet staring her straight in the face to prove it.

She wasn't sure whether to be disgusted or not. She was simply too stunned to decide.

She clamped her legs together and blushed heavily, swiping her sweat-matted hair from her forehead. She didn't know...well, okay she _did_ know where that came from. But for her subconscious to go to such extremes...it really bothered her. It bothered her that she was thinking of him this way.

Thinking of him _touching_ her like that, thinking of touching _him_ like that.

It was getting out hand, and it was driving her insane. The fact that she _couldn't_ do those things with him, that is. And to think it was only two days before when he was close enough for her to kiss. She really should have taken her chance then.

She stood and tugged the blanket over the mattress. And she jumped when the door opened and Isabel peered in, "You alright, Hanji?" she asked, "Farlan and I heard you fall or something."

Hanji blushed again, rubbing the back of her neck, "Yeah I did. I...uh, I fell...off the bed." she gestured to said furniture with a shrug.

"Oh, _heh_ , well..." Isabel chuckled, "Careful." she closed the door with a smile.

"Yeah-" Hanji murmured, gaze riveted on the bed, "-I will be."

•

•

She wasn't exactly sure who she was rooting for in Mikasa and Eren's little sparring match. They were fairly even in skill, build, and stamina. So she simply watched, chin propped on her hand.

Mikasa jabbed Eren in his exposed rib, and while he scrambled to block her impending attack in his head, she surprised him by ducking and sweeping his feet out from under him. Now it was a wrestling match on the ground, for the most part. Amusing, even, for Hanji at least.

"I thought she said she sparred with him _every_ day." Farlan leaned close to Armin to say. Both of them were standing near to her, observing the match with a moderate amount of interest. "How come Eren only arrived a couple days ago?"

"Grisha had to go visit Lady Brzenska again. And since Eren's gonna be a physician too..." Armin shrugged, "He went with him."

Farlan sat back up with a nod, "I see. And did he say how Brzenska was doing?"

Armin shook his head, "Afraid not."

Hanji shuffled in her seat, unnerved at the news of there being _two_ noble families here. Her paranoia over being found out had died down over the past few weeks. But now it had come back to life with a vengeance. Upon hearing of a Lady, she remembered what Isabel had said about the Lord they were paying to own this land. About how she might meet him soon, and the fact that he might recognize her. Though she still wondered if news of her disappearance had gotten this far yet. Perhaps so, perhaps not. Only time would tell, she supposed.

Nonetheless, it was still highly disconcerting, and her discomfort led her to head inside to be alone with her thoughts. She sat on the nearest chair, caressing her splinted arm absentmindedly. She glanced up when Levi walked by, and he paused to return that glance. It only lasted a moment, a mere moment before they both turned away. Her to hide her blush over his presence and the thought of her dream, and him to deal with the memory of a few nights back.

He continued on, exiting the cabin.

She turned to look in his direction after he left, bemoaning the fact that she was becoming so infatuated with him. She was deeply compelled to look past his shortcomings _(hah!)_ , past his emotionless wall. To somehow manage to connect with him, discover what makes him tick, what he feels for her.

Granted, she knew he didn't feel the same about her. Not with his smug little display a few nights back. And she buried her face against the back of the chair in a sigh of defeat. What was she going to do with him?

•

•

She pushed her food around with her fork, listening to her companions as they laughed and told stories. Levi's gaze was often cast in her direction, and she was most concentrated on ignoring him as well as she could. For the sake of her sanity.

"Hey! Hey!" Eren caught everyone's attention, "Have you guys told Hanji here about Lord Tiberius Ragúe?"

"Ooohhh..." Isabel grinned deviously, shooting a most disgruntled Levi an evil look before she turned her attention to the girl in question, "No we haven't."

"I'm going to _kill_ _you_ , brat." Levi hissed at Eren, who shrank back into his seat, and Mikasa's protective arm for that matter.

"Who's Lord Ragúe?" Hanji pondered, both to herself and Isabel. It was a name she hadn't heard of before.

"Well-" Isabel began, pausing briefly to quiet the snickers and giggles from around the table. "-we had just finished a job for that very man. We picked up the bounty and achieved it in a scenario I'll elaborate upon some other time." she said, glancing at Levi again, who Hanji noticed appeared to be blushing in embarrassment, if only slightly. Upon noticing that she was watching him he looked away and tucked his fist beneath his chin in a resigned, uncharacteristic pout.

"So we go up to this Lord's castle, hadn't met him before this, we only took claim on the bounty." Isabel continued, "We get inside, they guards let us into the hall, and then..." she trailed off for dramatic effect, "Fat!" she exclaimed, slamming her hand down against the table and scaring Hanji half to death. "He was _the_ _fattest_ man we had ever seen! And gluttonous too, he was actually _eating_ while we were trying to deliver his item."

"And he doesn't say a word. Not one word, just keeps on eating and doesn't even look at us." she shook her head, and Hanji noticed Levi tense as she inhaled to speak again. "So Levi...he decides it would be a good idea to instigate conversation. He steps forward all polite, sets the item down on the table, starts to speak, nice and formal."

Eren snorted, and Mikasa covered her face while he coughed on his food.

"And Lord Ragúe decides he doesn't like that." Isabel grinned, "The pig of a man stands up, grabs his plate, and the next thing we know, Levi is covered in roasted vegetables!" she said with a wave of her hands over her body to demonstrate.

Hanji covered her mouth, glancing at Levi and fighting her laugh. He didn't look all too thrilled to have this story be told. She wouldn't blame him for it, but it was still funny.

"To make matters worse, Levi slips up, curses and actually calls him a pig." Isabel chortled.

"Isabel..." Levi groaned, and in an unusual display of emotion, planted his forehead against the table.

Hanji gave a coo of sympathy for him.

"Ragúe didn't have anything other than food to throw at him. And Levi got a few pastries to the face for his trouble." Isabel gently pat her brother on the head, chuckling all the while. "We've avoided all jobs from him ever since."

Hanji chuckled, along with Armin, Mikasa, and Eren. "That sounds absolutely dreadful." she sighed, not missing the fact that Levi tilted his head to look up at her.

He sat up straight and crossed his arms, "It was."

"Levi was livid!" Isabel sniggered, "You only _think_ you've seen him angry. We had to bash him over the head to calm him down, he was determined to kill Ragúe." she laughed.

Hanji covered her mouth to hide her gasp, looking up at Levi, who pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. _'Poor thing...'_ she sympathized inwardly.

"By the way, be ready tomorrow, Hanji." Farlan finally spoke up, "We're headed into town to have you see Doctor Jäger."

Hanji tilted her head, "Hmm..? Oh!" she exclaimed in realization, lifting up her arm as if to remind herself of it, "Right, I'll be ready."

"Oh, that? I can look at it for you. You don't need to go into town." Eren proposed.

"You're no doctor, Eren." Isabel chided.

"No, but I live where all the kids in town tend to play. I've set far too many broken bones to count." he defended, "I'll take a look at your arm anytime tonight, Hanji."

Hanji nodded, "Thank you, Eren."

"Still taking her to see Grisha tomorrow." Isabel mumbled.

Hanji watched curiously as Levi stood and left the table.

"But he'll just say the same thing I'll say! It would be a waste of time." Eren argued.

Hanji tuned out of the conversation and excused herself when Levi did, tentatively following him outside. The man walked down the path a few feet, stepping to the side and sitting down on the grass before the bank of the lake. She took a few steps towards him, waiting for him to acknowledge her presence. But as he only picked at grass blades and gazed out upon the glossy, dark lake, she moved to sit beside him.

It was a bold move, she wagered, but he didn't seem to mind, he simply glanced at her and then back at the lake. She smiled in the brief moment he had looked her way, and then tugged her knees up to her chest to rest her elbow upon.

"I'm sorry that they embarrassed you." she said.

He blinked, and turned to her curiously, "What?"

"The story. I could tell it bothered you to hear it...bothered you that _I_ heard it." she said with a sheepish smile, eyes flitting between his contemplative face and the ground.

"I see." he said, crossing his legs and leaning forward into a relaxed hunch. "Well, you aren't wrong." he huffed a light laugh.

Her smile widened, and they descended into a period of silence. It was a nice silence: crickets chirped, the water sloshed gently against the shore in soft waves. There were a few owls that Hanji could hear, hooting and screeching like they do. All accompanied by a cool, light breeze and the glow of the brilliant stars in the sky, it was simply lovely.

"Aren't you cold?"

She looked up at him in surprise at the question. While it _was_ chilly outside, with the cooling season, and especially at night, she wasn't cold. Well, okay, she was a little cold. And she recalled moments like this in her novels. All those overdramatic and proportionately overblown stories that gave her such unrealistic expectations of the world. This scene in particular was often played out, so she decided to test her luck and play along.

"A little bit." she murmured.

"Hmm." he hummed.

She shuffled at the following silence, and she opened her mouth to speak:

"You should go inside then." he said before she could even attempt to say anything.

She bit her lip, shrinking back a little. Well that backfired! She had thought he might offer his jacket or something. Just like the men did in those novels. Yet another thing she needed to correct authors in. She added it to her mental list. "I'm not _that_ cold." she cleared her throat, picking at the hem of her trousers..

He looked at her, glancing up and down, the motion sent an unreasonable chill down her spine, and her breath hitched softly. "You have gooseflesh." he pointed out, "You _are_ that cold."

She grasped her arm and rubbed it gently, trying to think of the right words to express what she actually wanted.

 _'I don't want to go inside, I just want to stay out here...to spend time with you.'_ her thoughts sighed mournfully, and she turned her head away shyly. "I...I guess I'll go inside then." she murmured, wincing at her cowardice. Granted he would probably reject her attempts to advance their tense relationship further.

He nodded, and she hesitated before standing, "I'll just-" she gestured at the house.

"Mhmm." he hummed dismissively, turning back to the lake.

She frowned, her chest clenching with a strange ache she had never felt before. It was like a sting and a burn melded together and mixed with a sharp pang of longing. She gulped, turning away from him and clutching her hands to her chest, "Goodnight, Levi." she whispered as she left. She didn't have a chance to observe how the corner of his lip quirked upwards at her words.

•

•

She was met inside by Eren, who coaxed her into letting him see her arm. "Come on, just sit and take that splint off." he chuckled at her hesitance.

"I still think she should see Grisha about it." Isabel cocked a brow, "You're no expert by any means."

Eren pressed his lips into a thin line and he dropped his hands into his lap in exasperation. He glared at Isabel for a solid half minute before the redhead threw her arms up in surrender, "Okay! Sorry, go ahead."

" _Thank you_." Eren scoffed, taking Hanji's arm and prying the last of the bandaging and splint off. It wasn't painful, per se, when he prodded at the point of breakage, it only ached a little. But Hanji still winced reflexively, flexing her hand. "Does it hurt?" he asked, observing her reaction to his careful, analytic touch.

She shook her head, "Not really, it's just tender." she shrugged.

"Mmm." Eren nodded, "Feels well set, and I personally don't think you will need to wear the splint anymore." he dragged his fingers back and forth over the breaking point and scrunched his brow, "Seems like it was fractured...luckily. A full break would take much longer to heal." he observed. "You might have taken the splint off a week or so ago, if you so pleased." he gently placed her arm down on her lap and tilted his head in dismissal of the examination.

"Really?" Hanji carefully lifted and flexed her arm, wincing at the slight sting in her forearm.

"Just don't do anything too strenuous. It's not fully healed yet." Eren warned, "Though you do need to be sure to use it moderately each day. The muscles need to be rebuilt after sitting stationary for so long."

"How long before she can shot a bow?" Isabel asked, curious.

Eren raised one brow at the question, but he pondered it, "About two, maybe three months." he suggested. "Her arm could suffer a mild relapse even just from carrying something too heavy and putting strain on it."

Isabel exhaled through her mouth, "Well, I'll just have to teach her to crochet first then." she moved to sit beside Hanji, who was still moving her arm around experimentally.

"Thanks, Eren." Hanji gave him a gratuitous smile and rubbed her forearm gently.

"It was nothing. Saved you a ride into town, that's all." he stood and gathered her splint up to throw out.

"Unless you still want to go?" Isabel corrected, looking to her for a yes or no.

Hanji mulled it around in her head and sighed, "I honestly would rather stay here. I need a break from long rides." she stretched both arms above her head and flopped onto her side against the couch.

Isabel nodded, "I can surely understand that." she stood and brushed off her pant legs, "I'll go let Farlan know. Eren?" she called to the boy in the kitchen.

"Yeah?"

"Are you heading back with us tomorrow?" she asked.

Eren shook his head, "I'm staying a few more days." he decided. "Dad doesn't need me back yet and I used to stay for weeks at a time anyways."

Isabel nodded, "Fair enough." she clapped her hands together and spun around to face Hanji, "I suppose I'll see you in the morning, if you're up early enough. If not, see you tomorrow evening." she bent over for a hug, of which Hanji returned eagerly.

"Alright." she smiled upon releasing the older woman.

Levi entered the house and managed to walk halfway through the living room before Isabel assaulted him with a leaping hug. As if he had expected it, he simply caught her and spun her once to avoid falling over from her momentum.

"Farlan and I will be back late tomorrow." she informed him.

He smiled as he ruffled her hair, "Still no reason to jump me." he chastised.

"It's fun to jump you!" Isabel chirped, skipping away and throwing a smirk over her shoulder as she ascended the stairs.

"Childish..." Levi hummed to himself.

Hanji observed with a soft smile on her face, and jumped when he looked in her direction. "Hi." she murmured.

"What do you mean ' _hi'_? I just saw you outside." Levi raised a brow.

"Huh?" she blinked, the word blurted in what sounded like a mix between a hiccup and a squeak. In short, it was a rather humorous noise that she wasn't aware she was capable of making.

Eren snorted on the water he was drinking, coughing and sputtering over the sink. Levi turned to watch the boy suffer through the water he - no doubt - had just spewed through his nose. "Clean up after yourself, Eren." he instructed.

"Uh-huh..." Eren coughed.

Hanji swung her legs over the edge of the couch and stood, stretching once more for good measure. "Would you tell Mikasa that I'll help her with breakfast tomorrow if she needs it?" she called to Eren as she made to head upstairs.

Eren held out an affirmative thumbs-up.

"Goodnight, Levi." she paused in her trek to the stairs so she could murmur it to him.

"Goodnight."

She tucked herself in bed with both hands fisted above her heart, closing her eyes with the image of his soft expression in her mind's eye. She hardly even cared that she was falling over him, it felt too right to fight it anymore. Though she still refused to say she was in love, because she knew she wasn't _that_ far yet. It wasn't possible to be in love with him over a single, short month. Give or take a few weeks.

This was only the meager beginning. One that could only progress if he reciprocated her feelings. And so far, he apparently didn't. According to how he behaved and what he did a few nights back. She assumed that he could only possibly find her a little attractive, nothing more from what she could gather.

She rolled over and tugged her blanket over her shoulder, sighing and closing her eyes.

•

•

He was bathing her again.

He'd woken her early that morning, Isabel and Farlan were just leaving for town as he draped her over his shoulder and took her down to the waiting bath. She had no complaints, she simply yawned and waited for him to set her on her feet. "Thanks." she groaned as she stretched her arms above her head.

"Don't get used to it." he tugged her shirt up and over her head, and while she complied, she slapped his hands away with another yawn afterwards.

"I can- _ahhh_ -do it myself." she exhaled loudly as her yawn passed. She demonstrated by slipping her thumbs beneath the waistband of her pants and tugging it down the length of her legs. She stumbled lightly as she kicked them away, and she pulled what was left of her ponytail out, shaking her hair free.

Levi waited patiently, his posture less casual and more tense than she was used to seeing in him, but she mentally waved it off. She stepped into the tub and sank into the warm water with a hum of delight, dunking her head to wet her hair before he had the chance to do it himself. "You know I can wash myself now." she murmured as he began to lather soap in her hair.

He scoffed, "You still wouldn't do it right." he said.

She leaned back into his touch unconsciously, "I can learn..." she sighed.

He hummed in acknowledgment, but the tone of his voice gave the impression that he didn't like that idea. She dunked her head under the water when he pulled his hands back, and after rinsing the soap out she came sputtering back to the surface. She spun in place and wiped her hair back from her face, studying him curiously.

He looked irked, if only just slightly, and his frown was most foreign on his face. She didn't like seeing him like that. "What's that face for?" she asked, resting her arms on the rim of the tub and propping her chin upon them.

His lips parted and he cleared his throat. "What face?" he asked, reaching for the soap again, "You need to turn around so I can get your back."

She tilted her head in consideration, "You...don't want me to learn to bathe right, do you?"

He paused, looking at her with a deeper frown, "No?" he said it in denial, but his tone suggested otherwise.

She got to her knees, standing level with him, "You enjoy this." it wasn't a question, she said it as if she were in awe of her discovery. And it wouldn't be incorrect to say so. She found no denial in his features, in fact, he looked like a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar. "Why?" she asked in most genuine curiosity.

He looked to the side, and she reached a glistening, wet hand up to his chin and turned his face back towards her. "You'll get my shirt wet." he pointed out.

"Neither of us really care, Levi." she murmured, "Please tell me."

He exhaled through his nose, looking in any direction but hers. He looked positively shy, and she would be lying if she said she wasn't enjoying this a little.

"Levi?" she prodded.

He glanced at her, and then down, and she adjusted her arms so she wasn't pressing her breasts together. "There's no reason." he finally said.

"Don't lie to me." she deadpanned, it was more than obvious that he had some ulterior motive behind his incessant need to bathe her every other day. Insisting that she couldn't do it properly herself, and now she could tell he didn't _want_ her to learn to do it properly.

His frown deepened, "Hanji-" he said in warning, grasping her wrist with a sudsy hand when she tried to grab his chin again.

"Ah...careful." she gestured to her left arm pointedly, and he loosened his grip.

"Hanji, you don't understand, and you're seeing things that aren't there-"

"Please don't feed me that bullshit, Levi. I'm not stupid." she interrupted, sliding her wrist out of his grip, only to entwine her fingers with his. She heard his breath hitch as she looked down at their hands. It felt so right to hold his calloused hand, a perfect fit. Despite his stature, his hands were slightly bigger than her more dainty ones. She tilted her head in endearment and gently rubbed her thumb against his hand.

"What are you doing?" he whispered.

She looked back up at him and studied his face. He looked just as awe-struck as she felt. Her eyes drifted down to his lips, and she tugged him forward.

"Hanji?" though he protested vocally, he didn't resist her pull, but rather followed her lead most eagerly.

Their faces were inches apart by the time she paused to look at his steely blue eyes, "This is familiar." she huffed the lightest of laughs.

He nodded, glancing down at her lips, "Yeah."

"Levi?" she gulped, breath quickening.

"Yes?"

"I think I'm going to kiss you." she breathed.

His nose touched hers, and he tilted his head to accommodate the impending kiss, "Okay. Why?"

"You ask too many questions." she snaked her hand around his neck, never minding the water that dripped from it, "And because I _want_ to." she closed the distance with a gentle pull on his nape. Their lips met. The water sloshed as her knee slipped, and he steadied her with a hand against the small of her back. His lips were soft and warm, and the kiss was all-too-brief before he pulled back only just enough for them to look at one another in focus.

There was a pause, a mere few seconds.

And then the pull was like gravity. They came crashing back together, more impassioned and less timid than the few seconds before. Her chest pressed insistently against his, and she raked her fingers through his hair while his free hand did the same. He gripped her hair and tilted her head back, breaking the sloppy kiss and moving his lips along her jaw. She closed her eyes and hummed in bliss, her heart pounding in her ears as she listened to his ragged breath.

It only lasted mere moments, a fact she grieved most dearly, but he stopped himself from progressing down the column of her neck and resolved to press his forehead against her collarbone. She panted softly, dragging her fingers across the short hairs on the back of his head soothingly.

"You got my shirt wet." he murmured.

She chuckled breathlessly, "You would say something like that, wouldn't you?" she sighed to herself.

"You're getting pruny too." he pointed out.

"Mmhmm." she tugged him closer to her, eliciting a slight noise of protest, "I don't want to leave yet...I'm not clean anyway." she said.

He pulled back and gave a sigh of his own, "I..." he began, and she had to resist the urge to tug his lips back into reach when he pulled his lower lip between his teeth, "I should let you take care of that...cleaning yourself." he stood and backed away, rubbing the back of his neck and looking away.

She felt her heart sink, did he regret it? It sure looked like it. And the thought was almost physically painful to her. She sat down on her rear and sunk to her chin in the water, "I'm sorry." she murmured.

"Sorry?" he turned back to her in confusion.

"I won't kiss you again if that's what you want." she pulled her knees up to her chest and kept her eyes on the soapy water.

"Hanji-" he began, returning to the side of the tub, "-what makes you think I _didn't_ want that?"

She gaped up at him and scrambled to find words, "But...I...what?" she gasped.

"Now you're the one asking questions." he said smugly, reaching to hoist her up to her feet by her shoulders. She gripped the ends of the towel he draped around her back to her chest, self-consciously swiping her wet hair away. "Do you really think I'd just let a girl kiss me if I didn't want it too?" he asked.

She mulled the logic of his question around in her head and shook her head sheepishly, "No, I suppose not." she bit her lip as he led her out of the tub.

"I don't like to talk about things if I can help it." he continued, helping her into the clean clothes he had brought with them. "And Isabel has probably already told you that I'm not good with words." he rubbed her head vigorously with the towel, and she grunted once or twice as she nearly lost her balance. "But I will say this-" he grasped her chin with one hand, the other grasped her hip and pulled her close. Despite their height difference he somehow managed to make her feel small next to him. "-I don't care that you kissed me...and I don't care if you do it again." he said assuringly, punctuating his statement with a chaste press of his lips against hers.

"Would you care if I told you I might love you?" she asked as he pulled back.

"You don't love me." he said.

She nodded sadly at that, unfortunately it was true. Though she sure as hell liked him, and that was close enough at this point. "You're right. But...I might. In the future." she pointed out.

He paused in retrieving her dirty laundry from the floor, "You think so, do you?"

"Yeah."

He straightened and hummed in consideration, "We'll just cross that bridge when we come to it." he declared as he moved to leave the room.

"Okay." she sighed as he left, and she gasped as she fully registered what had just transpired between them. "Oh my God." she breathed, a smile spreading across her face and her eyes fluttering shut at the memory of his lips against hers. The luxury of a memory rather than fantasizing was enough to make her stomach do backflips and her heart race with excitement.

He was also her first kiss. She didn't know if that was the same case for him, but frankly she couldn't care less right now. She walked with a childish, gleeful skip to her step as she made her way to the table in the kitchen.

...Mikasa asked her why she was humming during breakfast...twice.

•

•

Levi closed his door behind him and closed his eyes shortly after, rubbing his temples with one hand. "I'm in deep shit now." he murmured to himself. If she weren't in the bath it might not have happened. But her slick skin, hooded eyes, and husky voice was enough to coerce him into revealing his inner desires. She had him hook, line, and sinker. And now that they'd come partially clean, he knew that the frail relationship they had built was going to drag them both down.

Not that that was a bad thing...

He sat on his bed and opened his nightstand drawer, pulling out his whetstone and favorite dagger to pass the time until Mikasa called him out for breakfast. He needed to clear his mind, calm his body, and simply think for a while. A feat he might have been successful in, had a browned paper not caught his eye.

His brows knit together as he carefully plucked the poster he got from Lord Cedric out of the drawer. He read the fine print describing the girl, then he reexamined the replicated painting and hummed to himself. He couldn't quite place it, but the soft slope of the depicted girl's nose was achingly familiar. He brought the paper closer to his eyes in an attempt to pick out her more subtle features...

"Levi! Breakfast!"

He jumped at Mikasa's shout, tucking the paper back into the drawer, "Coming. No need to scream at me." he called as he exited his room, all thoughts of the poster banished from his mind. For now...

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **And they have finally kissed! You have no idea how much I fangirled writing that scene. I had to stop and squeal a couple times.**

 **Next chapter, stolen kisses, development, and Levi's growing revelations about Hanji (Zoë)**


	8. Chapter 8

**Mailbag:**

 **hairdryer:**

 ** _You'll have to wait and see. Thank you for your support and your obvious fervor towards my story. People like you make my day._**

 **So this one is late. Causes being:**

 **1\. One stupid, emotional issue last week**

 **2\. Internet went to shit for two days.**

 **3\. I got sick for a few more days**

 **4\. And to top it all off: I got a** ** _3-day-long_** **writers block.**

 **Fun fun...not.**

 **Anyway, enjoy! Kind of a filler chapter but I threw in a few tentative Levihan kisses and fluff. Lots of the waterworks from Mikasa in this chapter, fair warning, lol.**

•

•

"No, no...through here, turn the hook...no...oh boy." Isabel sat back, exhaling through her mouth and slumping a bit as she watched Hanji fail yet again to do her stitch right.

Hanji sheepishly ducked her head and unraveled the thread to try again, "Sorry. It's just that coordinating holding the thread and project with my left hand and moving my right like so...it's difficult." she sighed, examining what she had crocheted so far. The stitches varied in size, a trait Isabel assured her was normal for a beginner. There were about four of them, the delicate 'shells' extending from her initial chain of single stitches.

Isabel cleared her throat, "It's alright, it's only your third day after all. Perhaps we should stick with the chain stitch until you get the hang of it."

Hanji chuckled, "Or maybe just a single, like you showed me before? I've done enough chains to hang a man." she relaxed in her chair with a deep sigh. The art of crochet wasn't all that different from knitting, but she had experience with neither. She _did_ use to watch her nursemaid Maggie knit sometimes, but she had never practiced it herself. She was more of a needle-and-thread type of girl, as she preferred embroidery to her current subject of tutorage.

"Yes, I suppose we could stick with the singles." Isabel nodded, "Alright, here, I'll undo the shells." she offered, taking the experimental project from her and promptly undoing the damage.

Hanji smiled in thanks and glanced up at Levi and Farlan on the opposite side of the living room. As if sensing her gaze, he looked up from his book to meet her eyes with his own. Despite their sudden, mutual declaration of infatuation for one another, they had been very chaste since the incident of a week past. Heck, they had only exchanged one peck on the lips since then:

 _~ "-I really do try to look at it from Armin's perspective." she was saying, and she noticed how he seemed to deflate with a sigh. He was tidying her room (and had been for the past thirty minutes), having complained that she was awful at keeping it dusted properly. She would inquire as to the cause of his frustration, but she was currently mid-rant, and she didn't feel like pausing to ask for his reasoning. "But even Farlan agrees that Eidenburg's works are far more compelling and-"_

 _"Hanji." Levi interrupted, sitting on her bed and tugging the book she was no longer reading from her limp hands. She glanced up at him, waiting for him to speak, but he went for a whole ten seconds without doing so..._

 _So, she attempted to continue her rant, "And I told Armin-" she was immediately cut off by his lips, and she gave a light squeak of surprise. Barely able to reciprocate before he pulled back._

 _"Sometimes you just don't know when to shut up." he said, and she smiled, giggling as she attempted to draw him in for another kiss. He stood, however, halting her efforts. But he placed a gentle hand on her cheek and stroked the skin with his thumb to assure her after she frowned, crestfallen, "I'm covered in filth, I'll be in the bath." he said in explanation, leaving her room._

 _She flipped back onto her mattress with a sigh and a newly contented smile on her lips. ~_

There seemed to be a silent, mutual agreement between them that they could move their budding relationship along too fast if they weren't careful. Not that she would ever mind that, but as for him, she could sense that he was highly tentative. He likely preferred graduality in the progression of their relationship. Baby steps rather than the sudden jump they had taken the week before.

He still bathed her regularly, and they still had their intimate moments, but they were surely subdued. For the most part, his hands would occasionally pause in washing to simply caress her skin. Though during her last bath he had hugged her from behind, nary minding how her sopping hair wet his shirt. He said he just felt like it when she asked him why he did it. And that explanation was far more than enough for her.

The memory made her blush, and he seemed to remember it too when he noticed how her cheeks darkened. She offered him a soft smile, turning her attentions back to her crochet when Isabel handed it back to her.

•

•

"So, when did it happen?" Farlan asked, cleaning out his pipe and studying Levi with a calculating eye.

Levi turned to him, expression carefully schooled into tentative curiosity, "When did _what_ happen?"

Farlan smiled, "Don't play dumb with me, you and I both know I'm too sharp for that." he chuckled softly, "I'm asking when you went from aloof observation to eye-fucking when it comes to our guest over there."

Armin gave a squeak of surprise at the crass phrasing from his place on the floor. He glanced up at Levi in shock, and then glanced towards Hanji. Levi raised a brow at the boy when his gaze returned to him, one that said: _'Speak of this and you'll regret it.'_ and Armin quickly re-immersed himself in his drawing.

"I wasn't _'eye-fucking'_ her." Levi murmured, glaring at Farlan to demonstrate that he was on a thin thread as it was and that further insistence might lead to injury.

Farlan only tempered his insinuations just barely, "Perhaps not, but you can't tell me something _hasn't_ happened between you. You've got googly eyes and so does she." he gestured to the girl in question.

Levi turned away from his brother-in-law with a snort of defiance. "However true any of it may be, I don't need to explain how or why anything may have happened between us." he explained vaguely.

"So you _are_ courting, then?" Farlan asked with a triumphant smirk.

Levi properly growled, apparently not vague enough. "I never said that."

"But you plan to."

It wasn't phrased as a question, and Levi found he could not deny it. So he resolved to slouch in his seat and prop his chin upon his hand in defeat. "Perhaps." he said in a mumble.

Farlan chuckled, "Oh come now! No need to be so off-put about your own romance. You behave as if it's a crime for you to admire her in such a way."

Levi peered at him through his peripheral vision.

"All I'm trying to say-" Farlan cut himself off with a snort, snickering behind his hand and tensing as he made to stand, "-is that...I told you so!"

Hanji, Isabel, and Mikasa all jumped in fright when Farlan cried: "I told you so!" and leaped from his place to take off running out the door, Levi following close on his heels.

"What on earth has gotten into them?" Isabel breathed, hand pressed to her chest in an attempt to calm herself.

"I don't know." Hanji and Mikasa replied simultaneously. All three women shook their heads and returning to their crochet.

All the while Armin shivered in apprehension, wondering: _'Will Farlan be coming back alive after Levi gets his hands on him?'_

•

•

"Not so difficult anymore, is it?" Mikasa looked over her shoulder at Hanji, who was milking their cow. She had attempted to do so before, but her hand was still a little too handicapped with the splint on, so she postponed learning the skill until now.

Hanji smiled back at the younger girl, "It's much easier now, and fun." she added, patting the bovine on her rounded barrel when she shifted and stomped one hind leg.

"Good." Mikasa smiled, reaching under one of their six chickens to retrieve an egg. "Want to help make the bread again?" she asked.

"Of course." Hanji said, topping off the milk bucket and standing up with a stretch. She wiped her forehead, remarking in her head that it was a hard task - milking that is - if she worked up a sweat over it. Since her arm had healed she progressed from simply measuring ingredients for the daily loaf to actually kneading the bread. It was a big help for Mikasa, who complained about the daily, tedious task nearly every time she performed it.

"I'll be inside after I finish collecting the eggs and feeding the coop, why don't you go take that milk to the kitchen?" Mikasa instructed while she collected another egg.

"Alright." Hanji grasped the handle of the milk bucket with her good hand, not wanting to strain her still-delicate left arm with the weight of it. She passed by the empty stall that housed Eren's horse as she made to leave, and she paused to look back at Mikasa. He had left a few days back, complying with his father's wish that he be back home. In larger time frames as well, since Mikasa and Armin weren't all alone in the cabin anymore.

Mikasa had an air of sorrow about her since his departure. She was more morose than Hanji had initially come to know her when the boy wasn't there. "Hey..." she called to get the raven-haired girl's attention. She smiled assuringly, "He'll be back in a few days." she said when Mikasa turned to her in curiosity.

The girl's features became somber, and she nodded, a subtle flash of guilt was discernible in her obsidian eyes. But Hanji didn't dwell on it, misinterpreting it as something similar to longing.

She continued her trek to the house and began making preparations for a loaf of bread. She had learnt firsthand that it was a long, arduous task. And she had a new appreciation for her kitchen staff after cooking with Mikasa. All the kneading and proving that the loaf would need was always daunting when she rolled up her sleeves to help. It being a daily occurrence seemed to be beneficial to the recovery of her arm, though, so she never complained. Quite unlike Mikasa, who claimed she had made enough bread in her few years to feed an army.

"Baking again?" Isabel came to a halt against the island in the kitchen. She leaned against it and observed while Hanji measured out flour and milk.

"Yes." Hanji said, distracted by her task at hand.

"Are you going to be up for crochet later?" the redhead asked, drawing a pattern in a patch of spilled flour.

"I don't think so." Hanji accepted the eggs that Mikasa handed to her upon entering the kitchen. "Thanks, Mika." she said as the girl left the room as soon as she'd entered.

"I'll be right there to help in a moment." Mikasa called over her shoulder, "Getting my apron."

Hanji nodded, and Isabel hummed in acknowledgment. "Well, it's just as well. Farlan, Levi and I are going to go hunting. Hopefully we'll have venison for dinner tomorrow, if not that then maybe a pheasant."

"That sounds good." Hanji looked up with a smile and tossed her head to get her bangs out of her eyes, following up with her fingers.

"Add on the fact that we might not be back till the witching hour, if I know Farlan." Isabel held back a snicker and bounced over to said man's side as he walked by, "See you tonight, or tomorrow, whichever." she called.

"Yeah." Hanji wiped at an itch on her cheek, carefully measuring yeast into the warmed water. She blew a frustrated breath at her unruly bangs, ineffective in the long run, as the strand just flopped right back onto her nose.

"Hanji."

She glanced up in surprise at his voice, "Levi..." she smiled, nearly spilling the yeast.

"Watch yourself." he grasped her wrist to correct her, righting the little container with a barely concealed grin. "You have flour on your cheek." he pointed out before he wiped it off with his thumb.

"Thanks." she mumbled, embarrassed. He nodded and tilted his head thoughtfully. His thumb didn't leave her cheek, but rather kept stroking it softly. She leaned into the touch, watching him for any indication that he was going to kiss her. And she couldn't help the slight smile that pulled at her lips when he did just that. Tugging her closer by her nape and making her lean over the island counter to do it.

It wasn't a passionate kiss, nor was it chaste, somewhere in the middle. She hummed in approval when his tongue beggared entrance past the seam of her lips. And she lifted her hands to grasp his nape, but he pulled back, "Flour." he explained.

She grinned deviously and wiped her hands on her apron in response. "Better?" she asked as she scooted around the island to tug him back into the kiss. His protest over her still-floury hands was muffled, and he might have rolled his eyes if her fingers hadn't been raking pleasantly through his hair. The hands that rested at her hips slyly slid around and were making to cup her ass at the point where they were interrupted.

"Ahem..." Farlan cleared his throat in the doorway, raising a brow as the two sprang apart. "Isabel's waiting." he explained, face alight with mischievous glee. A rare sight, as he was usually such a calm, stoic man.

Hanji tucked her hair behind her ear and blushed from that very appendage down to her sternum, smiling sheepishly in embarrassment.

"Don't look so smug or I'll kick your ass again." Levi scoffed as he brushed past the taller man.

Farlan chuckled, winking at Hanji as he closed the door, "I'll see you later, Hanji."

"Right." the girl muttered in reply, hiding her blush behind her hair even as he left.

•

•

"I hope you don't mind if I go lay down." Mikasa said as Hanji kneaded the dough for the second time in the baking process.

Hanji paused, swiping her hair back behind her ear, "Oh? You feeling alright?" she asked. Her younger counterpart had done more than her fair share in making the bread, and she looked fairly worn out. Hanji certainly didn't hold that against her, it was hard work. But she looked more than just fatigued, she looked a tad drained -emotionally that is - it was somewhat worrisome to see.

"I just need a nap, haven't slept well." Mikasa excused, and while Hanji easily saw it as a fib, she was quite guilty of a few herself. And she understood very well that sometimes one wants things to stay private, so she didn't question it out of courtesy.

"No, of course I don't mind. You go get some rest, I can handle this." she looked back at the dough as if it were a sparring partner, drawing her sleeves up further to prove her point.

Mikasa smiled half-heartedly and headed down the hall. Leaving Hanji to ponder exactly what was troubling the girl. When she had first arrived at the quaint cabin she seemed happy enough, even without Eren present. So why did she seem so upset now?

•

•

"So...are you going to tell anyone?" Armin was laying on his stomach, reading a book, and observing how Mikasa lay on the bed across the room with her back to him. She had told him the night before about her predicament. She and Eren had not been subtle to him over the past few months about the fact that they were _quite_ sexually active, so the news was obviously no surprise to him. But his near-adoptive sister was quite distressed over the issue.

He paused and lowered the book when she didn't provide him with an answer. "Not even Eren?" he added.

Mikasa rolled over onto her back and sniffled, "I wasn't even _sure_ until yesterday, Armin." she wiped at her eyes, and the blonde moved to offer her a handkerchief.

"Right. But why are you so upset over it?" Armin asked, bending to thread his fingers soothingly through her disheveled hair.

"Because." she hiccuped, blowing her nose with the kerchief, "Neither Eren nor I are prepared, and we aren't married either. It's a _fantastic_ situation! Levi is going to kill us, and Grisha too." she chuckled, devoid of mirth and bordering on hysteria in her mannerism.

"Calm down." Armin consoled, kneeling beside her bed and patting her arm, "There won't be any killing so don't get that in your head. And besides, what's done is done and they'll both understand that." he assured.

Mikasa nodded and sighed, "I know...I know it's just...you'll never be in this position, Armin. You can't understand what it feels like." she rolled to face his direction and wiped her eyes with her sleeves.

"No, I can't." he conceded with a nod, "Won't stop me keeping you from such notions, though." he tapped her nose with a forefinger and coaxed her into a sitting position, sitting beside her and letting her lean against him. Her arms latched onto him by his thin waist, and she pressed her forehead into his shirt to hide her tear-streaked face, "Don't worry about Levi and Grisha...just focus on taking care of yourself and telling Eren when he gets back. I'll help you break it to your brother if need be. And Eren will break it to his dad." he assured with a smile.

She nodded, tightening her firm hold of his waist and burying her nose into his shirt. "I'll try." she murmured.

"Good." Armin pressed a kiss to her hair. The girl was like the sister he never had, and he was honored to be her crutch during her vulnerability.

"Thank you." she whispered.

"Anytime, Mikasa." he responded with a smile, prompting a tighter hug from her. "Oh, want to tell Hanji too? She could break it to Levi better than I could, you know."

Mikasa sat up straighter and pulled out of their tight embrace, "What do you mean?"

"You don't know? They're in a relationship." he said it as if it were common knowledge, and she raised an incredulous brow at him.

"You're kidding me, right?" she asked.

" _Nnnoope_. Not kidding." he shook his head slowly.

"Wow." she blinked, "Uh, I-I guess we could...maybe...tell her." she murmured, pondering the matter with one slender forefinger pressed against her lip.

Armin sighed in relief, he had no doubt she would bottle this in as long as she possibly could before she told anybody. Likely until she began to show. But she trusted Hanji, hopefully, trusted her enough to tell her.

"Are you sure about that? About my brother and Hanji?"

Armin chuckled, "Very much so." he said, grimacing as he remembered Farlan's crass remark about Levi 'eye-fucking' Hanji.

•

•

"Are they back yet?"

"Hmm?" Hanji spun around in place, having just set the loaf in the oven. Mikasa stood in the hallway, fiddling with her long braid that draped elegantly over her shoulder. "Oh, no they aren't." she said with a smile, "Something wrong, Mikasa?"

The girl went to shake her head, but Hanji could see that she stopped herself with great difficulty, and then tentatively nodded, "Yes...actually." she whispered.

Hanji took note of how she hugged herself and hung her head, looking as small as she had ever seen her. "Come here, Mika." she beckoned, accepting her into her arms when she came running full force. "Easy there, sweetie." she gave a half-hearted chuckle at the girl's urgency.

Mikasa shook, sniffled, and Hanji quickly realized she was shaking because she was suddenly crying. "Hey..." she walked the girl over to the nearest seat, of which was the couch, and gently sat her down. "What's wrong, Mikasa?" she asked, smoothing a loose hair back from her face and wiping her tears away from under one eye.

Mikasa used the handkerchief she already had in her hand to wipe at her other eye, sniffling again to clear her sinuses. "I...it's difficult to say." she began, taking in a shuddering breath.

"I'm a patient person." Hanji smiled assuringly, not always true, but in delicate matters, she could be.

"I'm not usually this emotional." Mikasa's voice broke in a light son as she tried to regain her composure.

"Don't worry about it, it's natural to cry." Hanji wiped at the fresh tears in the girl's eyes again, smiling as much as she could with how worried she was becoming.

Mikasa nodded, regulating her breathing until she was calm enough to speak, "Well-" she began, "-you know that Eren and I..." she trailed off, fighting her will to cry more, "We-we are intimate...a-and..." she inhaled sharply, willing the tears to go away by blinking rapidly, "I've skipped _two_ of my bleeds." she said in a hoarse whisper.

Hanji mulled that around in her head for a moment or so before she realized what Mikasa was trying to say, "You're expecting?" she asked in confirmation.

"Yes. I'm...pregnant." Mikasa murmured, looking down at her hands shamefully.

"Well, that's great!" Hanji exclaimed, "Right?"

"Hanji..." Mikasa sighed, shaking her head, "Think of it. It's an illegitimate baby, and Levi really doesn't like Eren..and...the people in town think of this as shameful." she covered her face with both hands, muffling her whimper, " And to top it off, I haven't even told Eren yet." her voice sounded so _small_ , small and terrified.

Hanji gave her a coo of sympathy and moved to sit beside her, "Come come now, it's not that bad. You mustn't let yourself care what people think. It's not their life anyway, best try not to worry whether they'll try to make it their business." she said with a huff, that was one thing she knew well enough. Even the most blue-blooded knew the destructive and mentally debilitating results of gossip. But the best she could do was assure Mikasa that the opinions of others could hold no merit against her unless she allowed it. "Besides, Eren's opinion is the only one that truly matters, isn't it?"

"And Levi may be intimidating when he wants, but I doubt he'll be mad at you." she added.

"It's not _me_ I'm worried about when it comes to Levi." Mikasa sighed, leaning heavily against her shoulder.

Hanji chuckled, "Oh Mikasa...well, how about I tell Levi _for_ you?" she suggested.

Mikasa barked a shallow laugh, wiping at her face and nodding, "Armin said I should ask you to." she agreed.

"Insightful of him." Hanji hummed, rubbing Mikasa's arm soothingly.

"So is it true that you and my brother are...involved?" the raven-haired girl asked, sitting up to look at Hanji for a response.

Hanji blinked, "Erm..." she bit her lip and blushed.

"So you are!" Mikasa pointed at her flushed cheeks as a light smile graced her features, "Granted I wouldn't have known for sure if Armin didn't say so, but I still suspected."

"Right, right..." Hanji huffed, crossing her arms and blowing a strand of her unruly locks out of her face, "We only kissed." she mumbled.

"More than once I could wager." Mikasa peered closer, smile widening when Hanji shrank back in her seat in response.

"Three or four times." she sighed in resignation, briefly holding up the appropriate equivalent of fingers.

"Ahh, well that's not that much, enough to count on one hand. Still more than once, though." Mikasa sat back and smirked.

Hanji nodded begrudgingly, "Whatever." she turned to her companion and observed her, "You're more chipper now, aren't you?"

"I suppose so. I'm still terrified, but...I just feel better now that I've told you." Mikasa shrugged. "Do you...could you wait until I've told Eren? Before you tell Levi for me?"

Hanji turned her head and studied the girl's features more carefully, determining whether or not the girl intended to follow through with her plan of telling her unofficial spouse. "I don't suppose you plan on waiting long, _do you?_ " she inquired pointedly.

Mikasa took her turn to flush red and shrink back into the couch. "Of course not." she muttered.

"Mikasa." Hanji said in warning, "If you don't tell him sooner, he'll still learn about it later when you start to show. And I may be no man, but I doubt he would appreciate you waiting so long to tell him. Men, as far as I know, seem to prefer us to be blunt." she advised, although not entirely sure of it herself, it was what she had read and experienced. "After all, they aren't psychic." she added in a chuckle.

"I know." Mikasa sighed, "And I will tell him."

"Good." Hanji leaned back and sighed. "So...do you know what you'd prefer?" she asked after a long silence had passed.

"Prefer?" Mikasa echoed in confusion.

"Boy or girl?" Hanji clarified.

"Oh!" Mikasa hummed, considering, "Well, I hadn't thought about it."

"Not at all? Even in passing as a child?" Hanji prodded.

Mikasa tilted her head, "Well, I suppose once or twice. Until you arrived here the only other woman has been Isabel...so perhaps a girl." she answered tentatively.

Hanji smiled, "That's nice, and logical too." she made to stand, straightening out her apron.

"But I wouldn't mind if it were a boy." Mikasa took the offered hand and stood.

"Indeed." Hanji nodded, "You might want to freshen up, I'm sure our housemates will be home within the next hour or so." she gestured sheepishly to the girl's tear-streaked face and disheveled braid. Granted she was taking a shot in the dark about that time-frame. She honestly had no idea when their companions would be back, but best be prepared in any case, she wagered.

Mikasa nodded and self-consciously brushed down her skirt, "Right. Thank you, Hanji." she hugged the older woman briefly and made her way to her room.

Hanji placed her hands on her hips as she watched her leave, shaking her head as she considered what exactly she had just gotten herself into. She could be sure she had never imagined being in that same predicament, nor did she ever think it would happen even now. Still, it wasn't as if Mikasa hadn't felt the same...

She wiped her sweat-dampened bangs aside and huffed loudly. "What a day..." she sighed.

•

•

She woke during the night, incredibly early and not at all pleasantly. When she came to with a gasp, her hair and sleep-shirt were plastered uncomfortably to her skin in a cold sweat. The dream, or nightmare rather, wasn't easy to remember, but it entailed sickly, clawing hands and bloodshed. That much she was certain of.

The fear of laying back and closing her eyes in the dark made her heart race even worse than the nightmare had. The room felt small and the shadows intimidating. She wasn't going to fall back asleep without company.

Hanji sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Exiting the room, she considered the room directly adjacent to hers first. While she hadn't been awake to receive them that night, she _did_ know that Isabel and Farlan were home. But considering carefully, invading their room for comfort against night terrors just didn't sit quite right with her. They were a couple, after all. What was she going to do? Sleep between them?

She sighed and hugged herself, quietly descending the stairs and entering the hall below. She considered Mikasa and Armin's room, and then glanced at Levi's. A soft scoff escaped her lips, but she couldn't shake the feeling that his room was her best option. "Can't hurt to try, can it?" she murmured as she turned the doorknob.

"Levi?" she whispered, spotting her chosen 'victim' sound asleep in his bed. "Levi..." she called again, only just louder than her previous whisper. She went and knelt beside his bed, intent on waking him, but pausing to study him. After all, she had never seen him in the midst of sleep.

His usually hardened features were relaxed and soft, and she found herself wanting to stroke his face. So she did just that. Her fingers lightly traced his jawline, and then she brushed her knuckles over his cheek. The gesture provided her a sniffle and a light snort, and she had to stifle her ensuing giggle. The man shifted at the sound, face contorting and eyes slowly peeling open to stare at her.

He blinked rapidly, and she shifted in place as he did a double take. "Hanji?" he asked in confusion, obviously caught quite off-guard by her presence in his room.

She pulled her hand back and blushed, "Hi." she whispered.

He propped himself up on his elbow and raised a brow, "What are you doing in here?"

She cleared her throat, "I...uh, had a nightmare." she mumbled, looking up at him through her lashes with the unspoken question clearly displayed in her eyes. He sighed loudly, whether it was in defeat or out of amusement, she didn't know. He shaking his head knowingly and bit his lip as she took a breath to ask him aloud.

"Could I?" she made her initial move to climb into the bed with him. "Please?"

He took a deep breath and nodded, begrudgingly shuffling aside and patting the newly-emptied space. "Don't get used to this." he said as she made herself comfortable.

"Of course not." she agreed with a slight smile, scooting her body up against his and relaxing. He responded in kind by moving his hips away from hers and hesitantly laying a hand on her waist when her shirt rode up.

Hanji shivered when his thumb stroked her skin, and she looked over her shoulder to attempt to see him. To see his face and determine exactly what he might be thinking at that moment. "Is this okay?" he asked when she caught his gaze.

She nodded, laying a hand over his on her hip, "Yes, it's fine." she turned back onto her side. Closing her eyes, she started to become comfortable again. His clean, woodsy scent, combined with his warm hand on her skin started to lull her back to sleep.

"What was it about?"

She blinked her eyes open upon hearing his question, "Hmm?"

"The nightmare." he clarified, "What was it about?"

She pondered for a moment, "I don't remember much in clarity...it just...scared me is all, and I didn't want to go back to bed all alone in a dark room after I woke up." she explained.

He hummed in acknowledgment and she gave a quiet gasp when he tugged her torso closer to his, "Well now you have company in a dark room. Go to sleep, Hanji." he instructed. For some reason, she found his words to be very endearing, and a smile tugged at her lips when he added her name to his sentence.

She nodded, closing her eyes and focusing on his warm, steady breath against the nape of her neck. Eventually, she drifted off quietly. Most comfortable and quite content.

•

•

When she awoke a few hours later, the sun was nearly crowning the horizon. And she was somewhat surprised to feel that Levi was still in bed with her. He was usually up earlier than this...

Hanji yawned and stretched, carefully avoiding smacking her sleeping partner in the face as she did so. She shuffled closer to his body and hugged the arm that draped around her waist to her chest. Her fingers traced his knuckles, and she smiled as she pressed a kiss to them. It was _more_ than nice of him to actually allow her to sleep there. She had assumed he would turn her away over the fact that her bath was due that morning.

Whatever his reasoning, she wagered it could only be good for their budding relationship.

She paused mid-thought and pursed her lips when she noticed a foreign pressure on her upper thigh. Whatever was poking her was stiff, elongated, and she shuffled around in an attempt to determine what it was. Yielding no immediate results, she determined her best course of action. An action she would often look back on in the future and groan over in embarrassment. She would someday wonder why she hadn't simply rolled over to _see_ what it was.

But in the moment itself, her sleep-addled mind proved the logic perfectly sound. So Hanji reached back, between Levi's legs, and firmly grasped it.

Levi awoke abruptly at that, and his startled, high-pitched yelp helped her along the mental route to realize exactly _what_ she had just grabbed. Granted, the general shape aided her fairly innocent mind quite well enough without her sleeping partner's vocal confirmation.

With a squeak of utter mortification, she tried to sit up...and then, without an ounce of grace: she promptly fell off the bed.

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **Oh my God I laughed SO hard when I explained that scene to my sister.**

 **Phew, so Mikasa is preggers. Yup yup. And I would honestly like to know directly from you...  
I tend to feel somewhat awkward including smut from pairings besides the main ship in the story. BUT...do you guys ****_want_** **me to add in eventual, occasional lemons for our other two pairings so far? Do tell me your opinions.**

 **Next time, continuing from where this left off, and hopefully (if my inner timetable decides it's time) some Levihan action more intense than a kiss and less extreme than sex lol. And a little more side-plot with Mikasa and Eren.**

 **Now it's midnight and I'm bleary eyed and I'm hoping I didn't miss any grammar/spelling errors in my 3rd proofreading round of this chapter lol.**

 **Until next chapter folks!**

 **(Long-ass author note is long)**


	9. Chapter 9

**So freaking late! My apologies, y'all.**

 **But guess what? Your waiting is not without rewards. Along with nearly 9K words...have a thin slice of Levihan lemon! A very thin slice, paper thin. When life gives you Levihan lemons, slice accordingly and leave them wanting. XD**

 **Spoiler: these two won't actually, truly fuck until...**

 **Until...**

 **You really wanna know?**

 **You sure?**

 **Okay...**

 ** _Psych!_**

 **Sorry, that's confidential. But basically, they won't be truly fucking until a major development has happened.**

 **(A.N. Continued at the end of chapter)**

•

•

There was a lapse of silence, and only their combined, heavy breathing filled the room. Hanji's tumble landed her laying parallel to the width of the bed on her back, one foot propped on the mattress and tangled in the sheets she had dragged down with her. But she wasn't really concerned with that. All she could think about was what she had just done, how cold the floor was compared to the soft mattress, and just how mad Levi could be about her actions.

"Hanji?" his strained voice finally broke the silence, and she tilted her head down to look at him when he peered over the edge of the bed. The sight was almost comical: his disheveled hair and bleary eyes just barely visible over the crumpled sheets that still remained there.

She gave another mortified squeak when she realized that - from his vantage point - he had a direct view of her unmentionables. And it was _quite_ obvious that he had noticed by the way his gaze darted between her legs. She clamped her thighs together at that, rolling awkwardly onto her side and tugging her feet down from the mattress.

 _'So much for never letting him see it...'_ she bemoaned in her head, only half-heartedly.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

"I-I should be asking you that." she stuttered as she gingerly sat up, tugging her shirt down between her legs, "Uh...by the way, I'm sorry about that. I didn't know what it... _was."_ she grimaced, trailing off and averting her gaze, hand lifted to her eyes to shield them from the sight of his body out of sheer embarrassment.

Levi blinked a few times, and then rubbed his eyes, obviously still sleepy. In his own head, he was considering how sheltered of a life she must have lived to not know what was poking her. "It didn't cross your mind at all?" he asked, teasing, but his tone of voice didn't give that away.

"Well, I don't know! I've never slept with someone else before!" Hanji exclaimed in her defense, fully covering her face. "Let alone a man." she added, a little whine of self-pity escaping her as she did so.

Levi hummed, almost sounding amused, "It's fine, Hanji." he said as he made to stand. She glanced at him in surprise through her fingers.

"Really?"

"While it wasn't exactly _pleasant_ being groped awake, you didn't hurt me or anything." he said as he stretched his arms above his head languidly. She indulged herself by thoroughly ravishing his bare, toned back and shoulders with her gaze. She bit her lip behind her hands and hastily averted her eyes when he looked back at her over one of said shoulders. "I'm going to start a bath." he said as he grabbed a towel.

"Okay." she nodded, grunting as she got to her feet.

 _'I just slept with Levi.'_

The sudden thought hit her without warning, and she found herself smiling at the revelation. Funny how they didn't even _need_ to do anything other than sleep beside one another. And yet she was feeling butterflies in her stomach, daydreaming about doing it all over again. His skin, albeit calloused, scarred, and rough in some places (such as his hands) was delightfully smooth everywhere else. And she had a vague memory of gently caressing his sculpted abdomen in her sleep. The thought made her shiver in delight. Indeed, she wanted to sleep in his bed _every_ night now.

Though he _had_ said not to get used to it...

She winced as her actions played through her mind's eye yet again. "Damnit!" she hissed at herself, she had probably just made sure that it was true. Made sure that he wouldn't be after her company in that way again. She sighed and made her way into the washroom, it was empty when she entered. She closed the door behind her and waited a few moments before Levi came in through the door on the opposite side of the room.

She hadn't noticed it before he showed her it was there a week or so before. It led outside, basically a back door.

Levi looked up at her and paused, as if he didn't know why she was there.

"What?" she asked, playing with the hem of her shirt.

He looked at the tub and hummed quietly, "I suppose I can bathe you first." he said, more to himself than to her.

"Huh?" she brought a finger up to her lip in confusion, glancing at the tub.

"I _was_ starting the bathe for myself." he explained simply, exercising her suggestion that he heat the water with hot stones left in the fire pit all night. He had labeled it genius after he gave it a try, and she had eagerly accepted the label with a grin and flushed cheeks. He had said not to be so smug, and that it beat boiling bucket upon bucket of water.

"Oh." she hummed, "Well I don't mind waiting..." she looked sheepishly to the side whilst her mind bombarded her with overly-fantastical images of him bathing.

"No, let's get you washed up." Levi gestured to the newly readied tub, "You're already here, after all."

"But then you'll have to refill the tub." she protested.

He stood up from bending to test the water and turned to face her, his brow raised in a show of impatience. In response she stood in place for a time, shuffling her feet. And then she bit her lip and tugged her shirt over her head, stepping up to the tub obediently. "Nevermind." she murmured, a slight smile tugging at her lips. She didn't indicate that she noticed his newly-developed difficulty in keeping his eyes off of her figure.

He nudged her lightly against the small of her back and she stepped into the hot water, sitting down with a sigh. She closed her eyes instinctively when he dumped water over her head, a light sputter following. She wiped at her face and blinked rapidly to clear her vision, and he began to lather soap into her hair.

She let her thoughts drift as he made circles against her scalp with his fingertips. It was always calming when he washed her hair, and she often found herself nearly falling asleep. She leaned back and sighed, "I really do need to learn to bathe myself properly someday." she said absentmindedly.

His soapy hands tightened in her hair, and she grinned when she realized she had successfully reminded him of their first kiss. She tilted her head back to see his expression, and her smile widened when he scowled in his typical, admonishing way.

"We _could_ bathe together...you know." she murmured, her grin dimming down just enough to show she was serious about the insinuation.

He raised a solitary brow, and she could see him mentally mulling it over in his head. "I don't think we should." he said after a moment's thought.

She frowned in disappointment, sitting up straight and shuffling in place as she considered his answer. "Why not?" she asked as she swiped the impending soap trail back from her eyes.

He was silent for a time, and she eventually began to wonder if he had decided to ignore her question.

"Levi?"

His hands dropped from her hair to rest against her shoulders, and she jumped when his voice sounded directly beside her ear. How had he gotten so close without her noticing? "Because I don't trust myself to hold back." he said.

She was graced with a few moments of innocent ignorance before she suddenly realized what he meant by that. She felt her face burn at the thought, and yet, it was a tantalizing idea all the same. Her hand reached up, fingers caressing his as she turned her head. And his nose brushed against her cheek as she did so, "Well...I...I don't think I would mind _that."_ she managed to say, glancing down at the rim of the tub.

He pulled back at that, and she wondered if she had said the wrong thing, only to have her pondering dashed by him dumping another cup of water over her head. He did so twice more for good measure.

When she finally stopped sputtering over the water she stilled, realizing that his hand was tentatively resting low against her collarbone, fingers draping over the uppermost swell of her meager breast. Her breath hitched, unsure of what to say or do in her current situation. Especially when that same hand slid across her skin, down her side. His fingertips tantalizingly grazing against the side of her breast and then moving to cup it.

"And what if we did it right now?" he asked, his free hand swiping her wet hair back from her neck.

She couldn't find her voice to answer, especially not when his lips were brushing against the column of her neck. "Um..." she murmured. Racked with mental indecision, she bit her lip, humming lightly at the soft kiss he placed on her shoulder. She wasn't saying no...but she wasn't exactly saying _yes_ either. And he paused in notice.

"You're not ready for that." he stated matter-of-factly.

She hunched her shoulders together at the truth of it and hugged herself. He was right, again. And it made her terribly upset, as she wanted more than anything for their relationship to go further, right this very minute, even. But her earlier boldness had faded in the moment he began testing the waters she had so brashly presented to him.

"I guess not, at least when it comes to...actually making love." she finally spoke, stumbling over the latter of her sentence.

He nodded, she could feel the movement against her damp hair. "That's why I won't bathe with you, not yet. That's too big a step, for either of us." he said as he made to continue her bath, "And even if we tried not to...we both just wouldn't hold back." he chuckled softly, "You and I aren't the type to hold back."

"But-" she spun to face him, and she could feel her face flush as she spoke, "-I _did_ like it, when you touched me like that." she grasped his hand and swiped her thumb over the top of it, "If you did it again...well, I mean to say that: I would like for you to do it again." her voice drifted off into a whisper as she examined his face for a response. He blinked, his hand twitching in her grip, obvious in his desire to fulfill her request, and she looked down shyly.

She glanced at his loose pants and gulped, quite new to the prospect of arousing a man like she was doing. "Or...or I could touch _you_ , even." she suggested, looking back up at him in await of an answer. "I do _want_ to." she added.

He exhaled shakily, eyes screwing shut as he tried to calm himself after hearing those words.

"Is _that_ too big a step too?" she asked, most genuine in her curiosity. "It's not the same thing, right? I mean, it's just touching-"

"Hanji..." he murmured, his tone underlaid with a somewhat shallow warning. She got to her knees in determination, becoming eye level with him and urging him closer with a slight tug on his hand. He opened his eyes and shook his head slightly, "Not _right_ now." he murmured, demonstrating that there was no ire in his rejection by kissing her, chaste and quick.

She gave a pout when he pulled back, wound up and raring to go by that point. But she nodded reluctantly and sat back down to let him finish her bath. "Later, then?" she asked.

He huffed a laugh, "Maybe, Hanji. Sit still." he smacked lightly at her shoulder to halt her squirming.

She couldn't really help it, though. What with the warmth pulsing between her thighs, her heart beating rapidly with anticipation, and her mind begging for his touch again. He was definitely right about her not being ready for complete intimacy. She was a bit scared, honestly. She knew next to nothing about it. But she had absolutely _no_ qualms with exploration, _finding out_. Of that she was most certain.

The next six minutes she spent fiddling with her fingers beneath the water, turning when he asked and washing what was (as of yet) still inappropriate for him to wash. And when she finally stood and began to towel off, her thoughts were solely focused upon the male in the room and just how eager she was to jump him.

"I didn't bring my clothes." she said coyly, eyeing him up and down and lingering where she had seen him tented beneath his pants earlier. What she wouldn't give to see it again, and perhaps without the clothes to hinder her gaze...

He heaved a sigh and handed her the shirt he initially intended for himself when he was finished bathing. "Go on, _I'm_ bathing now." he gestured toward the door, and she nodded tentatively.

"Alright." she tugged the shirt over her head and slipped out of the bathroom, giving a sigh when it was locked behind her.

She ambled down the short hallway and back into his room, closing the door behind her. She flopped onto his unmade bed, one leg pulled up while the other dangled off of the mattress. Now she knew, of course, that he _meant_ for her to return to her room. But she couldn't, not with this unyielding urge for some friction between her legs, preferably caused by calloused hands belonging to a certain Shorty.

She shuffled in place at the thought, throwing her arm over her eyes and groaning as she waited the torturously long (not actually long) span of Levi's bath. Her thoughts dreaming up various scenarios for when he was finished. What he might do when he came back. And when the door opened less than fifteen minutes later, she sprang up most eagerly to meet his gaze.

He paused upon seeing her, closing the door behind him and running a hand through his damp hair. "You're still here, then." he said, tone laced with amusement.

"Should I not be?" she asked tentatively, glancing between the floor and his eyes, afraid she had possibly crossed a line.

He inclined his head, "I didn't say _that."_ he placed his towel down on the foot of the bed and stood before her sitting form, studying her.

"What?" she murmured self-consciously, fiddling with the hem of his lent shirt and blinking up at him.

"It's not a matter of whether you should be here...but a matter of _why_ you are still here." he explained, though she could see that he knew why.

"Levi." she beckoned him with a motion of her hand, and he crossed his arms as if to say he wasn't going to move until she spelled it out for him. "Come here, please." she added on, "I need you to come here, and then I'll show you."

He didn't answer, but merely stepped closer. She grasped at his waist as he stepped into range and tugged him close enough to rest her forehead against his abdomen. And he let her, a hand carefully threading through her hair while she immersed herself in his presence.

She thought she heard his breath hitch when she began gliding her hands up and down his back. And a small smile spread upon her face as she pressed her lips to his skin. Her tentative exploration was effective, and it soon had him breathing heavy, be it in anticipation or arousal. She didn't care to decipher which it was.

In a bold move, she reached down to grasp at his ass, at the same time lightly grazing her teeth against his still-damp skin. And that was his breaking point. He groaned softly as he grasped either side of her face and tilted her head up to accommodate his desperate lips. She reciprocated eagerly, one hand moving to his nape and tugging him closer while her tongue invaded his mouth. The coupling of lips was more than a little uncoordinated and clumsy. As a result his free hand moved to brace his weight, and the dip in the mattress promptly caused her to lose her balance and fall back with a breathless laugh.

His other hand came to rest on her knee, keeping him from following her down. She giggled and panted, glad to see the new, yet enticing shadows in his eyes.

"Hey, Levi?" she asked, peering down at him where he had frozen in place. "Is that clear enough?" she giggled.

He nodded, his thumb rubbing a circle on her naked thigh. "Yes, quite clear." he murmured, looking up at her with those hooded eyes she was starting to love so much.

She hooked an ankle around his hip and tugged him towards her, effectively causing his pelvis to collide with the bed, "Also...is it later yet?"

He looked up at her and scoffed, stepping onto the bed by his knees and leaning forward on his elbows to press his lips - briefly - to her exposed collarbone. He answered the latter question without words, dragging his fingers along the outside of her thigh. She tensed briefly when that same hand pulled her shirt up with it as traversed her body, all the way to her breast. And her breath hitched when he kneaded lightly at the newly-bared, slight mound. And yet however small it may have been, he still managed to cup it.

It wasn't all that pleasurable, really. Her shortness of breath only came from the knowledge that he was touching her like this, she would wager. And he seemed to be able to tell, when he lifted his head to look in her eyes for approval. She glanced down at him, schooling her expression into a slight smile to assure him that she was okay with this.

He considered her for a moment, then lowered his lips to the junction of her neck, right where it met her shoulder, and sucked sharply at the skin. Meanwhile his thumb brushed lightly over her nipple, and she let out a shaky breath, almost like a sigh, threading her fingers through his hair. While it kind of hurt, it was more pleasurable than painful to have him attending to her neck like that. Still, she _did_ rub tentatively at the sharp sting he left there when his lips moved downward.

She was hardly paying attention because of it. So when a warm - _so warm_ \- and wet sensation covered the same bared breast he was attending, she was startled. Her immediate response was a gasp and an erratic bucking of her hips. He looked up at her while he worked, judging her responses and adjusting his actions accordingly. She showed breathy appreciation when he swirled his tongue there...but she moaned - ever so slightly - when he bit gently at the skin. And so he did just that.

For a moment she just closed her eyes and huffed out shaky breaths, focusing on every touch and sensation he was providing her. She'd never been one to experiment with herself. Hell, she didn't think she'd even been truly aroused until she met him. Everything he was doing was an entirely new experience to her. Not that she didn't like it. Quite the opposite, she never imagined that satisfaction such as this could exist.

She stiffened when his freed hand traced some unintelligible symbol on her inner thigh. And he stopped his delightful ministrations to decipher whether she was uncomfortable or not. "You alright?" he asked, voice thick and husky with arousal. It sent a shiver down her spine and had her blood pulsing all the more for his touch.

She gave a quick nod, hesitating only momentarily when he spread her thighs further open. Feather light, near-indecipherable touches on the very outermost regions of her womanhood. Most certainly not enough, and a more instinctual, primal side of her had her reaching down to move his hand where she needed it.

He looked positively chastised, if one could call it that. One might consider it a glare if they didn't know him. But the slight purse of his lower lip and the way his cheeks flushed with color spelled it out quite clearly for her.

His hand remained still after she moved it, and she curled her fingers reflexively around his wrist before she tugged her hand back sheepishly. "Sorry." she said, bunching her shoulders up in a half-shrug.

He shook his head and readjusted himself on his other arm, "No, it's fine." he looked down at his hand, and she clamped her thighs together in response. As if to keep him from seeing her down below. To which he responded with a raised brow and a pointed motion of his hand, as if to remind her that it rested quite snug against her nethers, and that he was going to see it anyway.

"I uh...I mean...sorry, again." she gingerly relaxed her legs, letting them fall to the side naturally.

"I don't mind if you guide me." he said assuringly as he shifted for a better view of her unmentionables, "After all, I've never done this before, same as you." he seemed to admit that with some degree of difficulty, as if it hurt his pride to say it. And it made her smirk. To be his first woman...(no matter how trivial this particular activity may have been in her head) well that just made her feel rather proud of herself.

"Alright...well, you can move your hand now." she gestured with one of the hands she left resting leisurely beside her head.

He almost looked annoyed at the instruction, but he followed it nonetheless. And she tensed again when he began to fondle her, touch firm yet gentle as he mapped out her folds with his fingers. As with her breast, it was quite enjoyable, but not exactly pleasurable, per se. He looked up at her apparent lack of response, and his thin brows knit together in a show of determination at the sight of her laying there so casually.

She inhaled sharply, back bowing and hips thrusting instinctively up into his touch when he changed methods. Rubbing instead of feeling, and _God,_ did it make a difference! She surprised herself with the light whine of need that escaped her, and he responded by quickening his ministrations. His mouth returned to her breast, albeit the opposite one.

"Ah-ah...Levi that's...mmph!" she bit down on her knuckle to muffle the low moan he coaxed out of her when he managed to slip a finger inside her. Although it incited a slight sting, the way he crooked that same finger erased all acknowledgment of it.

"Is that too much?" he asked, pausing.

"No! No, no, it's fine. More than fine." she coaxed him anxiously, thrusting her pelvis into his touch.

She couldn't stop wiggling, her breath coming in sharp gasps and her hands scrambling for purchase in the sheets beneath her. He huffed lightly against her breast, no doubt it was a lot of work for him. She could see it when she glanced down and observed just how hard he was working to keep her breathless. It was certainly no easy task, and she wouldn't have blamed him if he said he was tired.

But still, he didn't stop his ministrations. He worked her diligently for a full three minutes, as a matter of fact. And when she finally reached the peak, her body arched up towards him, making a sound that - while quieted - was akin to a squeal.

As for what she was feeling, she had never imagined anything like it. Nothing in her life had ever really amounted to just how _good_ it felt, at least not yet. That aside, she couldn't quite believe it had actually happened. Even when she was a limp, panting, trembling mess beneath him she still had to run their near-coitus experience through her head a few times before she let herself believe it was real. That they had actually just done that.

His hand promptly slipped away when he knew for certain she had finished, and she responded with a soft whine of sorrow at the loss of contact. His other hand swiped her sweaty bangs back from where they were plastered against her forehead. And she blinked her eyes open to peer at him. When had she closed them?

He observed her for a moment, short of breath himself. And then he smirked, obviously prideful over what he had accomplished. "You are surprisingly quiet." he commented, kissing her once, long enough to incite a soft groan from either party, before he sat back on his haunches.

She blinked in bewilderment and her cheeks flushed with color, "I don't know if I should be insulted or flattered." she scoffed.

"Both." he said.

Now that the passion wasn't clouding her senses she had the chance to feel slight, brief embarrassment over what they had just done. Granted, she knew it wasn't truly anything extreme, but still...she just wasn't used to the idea yet.

He curled his dirtied hand in on itself to avoid touching anything with it, "Did you like that?" he asked.

She blinked again, and then her features dissolved into a goofy, contented smile as she thought about it, "Yeah. I _really_ did." she sighed.

She found her eyes hungrily roaming his figure, down to the prominent bulge in his pants. Her grin widened as she lifted her knee to brush against it, getting a thrill out of the way he grunted and thrust softly against her touch.

"Do you want me to return the favor?" she asked, voice soft and laced with a content purr.

He paused, considering only for a single moment before he shook his head rapidly, "No."

She tilted her head in curiosity, "Why not?"

"It's messy." he straightened and stood up off of the bed, looking for a handkerchief to wipe his fingers on.

" _I'm_ messy." she pointed out, and it was true, the apex of her thighs was now slick and her body sheened in sweat, add in his saliva on her neck and breasts...

It wasn't clean in either case, she was sure of _that_.

" _Too_ messy." he stressed, sighing as he leaned back against the wall.

"Come on! You _just_ had your finger knuckle-deep in my _cunt_ and you're saying my hand on your cock is too messy?" she pressed, growing a little irritated.

"Hanji!" he seemed strangely shocked to hear her say such crass words.

"Besides, I'd feel bad if I didn't..." she murmured.

"Don't, I really don't mind." he turned to her fully and shifted his legs uncomfortably, "Next time..." he paused, "Besides...everyone will wake up soon." he said in finality, and he gestured to her state of undress pointedly.

She huffed at that, damn him for being right so often! But she tugged the borrowed shirt down all the same and tentatively stood, irritatingly aware of the now-cold dampness between her legs. "Alright. Next time, though, I'll hold you to that." she said as she made to leave, pointing a finger almost warningly at him, to which he responded with a slight smirk.

"Okay." he said most simply, urging her along with a hand gesture. And she grinned yet again over the fact that he had willingly agreed to (and implied) there would be a _next time._

"And if I'm not going to..." she murmured to herself, turning around just before she opened the door, "Then kiss me before I go." she demanded, pointing at the floor and crossing her arms in expectation.

His face was incredulous at her demand, but he complied willingly. He crossed the few feet between them and tugged her close with a hand on the small of her back. She grunted with a smile as their torsos bumped. And the fact that he had to lean up just so in order to reach her lips still had the audacity to make her giggle. But she silenced herself this time, enjoying his soft lips and warm tongue.

"Mmm, that's more than a kiss." she chastised when he began to lightly grind his hips against hers. "You're _sure_ I shouldn't take care of it?" she smirked at the visible restraint he had to exact upon himself.

"Get out." he grumbled in annoyance as he opened the door, and he smacked her butt as she walked out. She squeaked and made a mad dash for the stairs, cackling loudly all the way and surely waking those who weren't awake just yet.

•

Hanji held the raven-black braid away from the younger girl's face while she emptied the contents of her stomach behind the cabin. "Does the nausea always start so early?" she asked, patting Mikasa's back and rubbing circles soothingly.

Mikasa cleared her throat, shaking her head as she straightened and leaned back on her haunches. "No, it's only slight during this month. But I can't eat spices anymore..." she sighed. "I think that's why I vomited this time, I always put a lot of seasoning in my stew." she added in a chuckle.

"Oh." Hanji nodded, "So you'll make some stew separately for yourself then?" she suggested.

Mikasa nodded, "Something like that." she said as she made to wipe her mouth, and then decided against soiling her dress sleeve. "I'm going to go rinse my mouth." she pointed to the chilly lake.

"I'll come with you." Hanji offered, along with her hand to assist her in standing.

"Thank you." Mikasa smiled wearily.

The small trek to the water was silent, as well as the time the younger woman took to freshen herself up. Hanji sat upon the bank and occupied herself with tossing small stones into the lake.

"So what were you doing in Levi's room this morning?" Mikasa suddenly asked.

"What?!" Hanji jumped and turned to gape at her in surprise, unsure of what to say.

Mikasa moved to sit beside her, chuckling softly, "I'm more restless nowadays, so I was awake earlier." she said, "And...you were in there for a while." she turned to look at Hanji with a knowing smile.

Hanji bit her lip and turned away to hide her blush, "We...we didn't do anything..." she murmured.

" _That_ says otherwise." Mikasa pointed to the blooming red circle on her neck.

Hanji rubbed sorely at the hickey, begrudged, "Anything significant, that is." she corrected herself.

"So you _did_ do something?" Mikasa prodded with an uncharacteristic smirk, nudging her shoulder.

Hanji looked at her through her veil of bangs and scowled in embarrassment, "He uh...well I asked him to...you know." she gestured briefly to her legs before she covered her face in her hands. She peeked through her fingers to see if Mikasa had caught her drift.

"Oooh! You asked him to." the girl grinned, sitting back and crossing her legs. "And?"

Hanji removed her hands from her face and stared at her in confusion, "And...what? What more is there to tell?" she asked.

Mikasa shrugged, "I guess nothing, really, I'm just curious to hear about the gritty details."

"Even though he's your brother? Wouldn't you think it's gross?" Hanji felt herself blushing again.

Mikasa shrugged, "Not really."

Hanji chuckled awkwardly and shook her head, "Well, like I said, there's not really much to say. And you know damn well what goes on anyway!"

"Heh, yeah I suppose you're right." Mikasa hummed, closing her eyes against the wind and inhaling deeply, seemingly dropping the subject. Hanji, however, took the time to think back on her experience that morning. About how hesitant Levi behaved when she offered to service _him_. And now she was curious herself...

"Hey, Mikasa?" she began timidly.

"Yes?" the girl didn't open her eyes just yet, but rather lay down on her back with a sigh.

"I have a question...and I'm asking because I know you have...s-sexual experience." she tripped over her words at that point, scratching the back of her neck awkwardly.

"Mhmm?" Mikasa hummed again.

"You know that he t-touched me. But-" she bit her lip again and have a nervous chuckle, "-um, when I offered to...help him with his...ugh! Basically, he didn't seem to want me to." she said in frustration, irritated with herself over the fact that speaking about it gave her so much issue.

Mikasa finally opened her eyes at that, pursing her lips in contemplation, "He didn't want you jerking him off, then?" she asked crassly.

"That's the vibe I got from him." Hanji blushed again, resolving to redirect her gaze to the grass and pick out individual blades of it absentmindedly.

"Hmm." Mikasa's lips tugged upwards in a smile, "But he had no issue with getting _you_ off?"

Hanji nodded, scrunching her shoulders together.

Mikasa considered for a moment before a smile spread across her face, "You can't tell him I said this-"

"I wouldn't even tell him I told you." Hanji deadpanned.

"-I think he's nervous." Mikasa continued as she propped herself up on her elbows, "I don't know if you know, but it's typically common knowledge that men tend to be insecure about their cocks." she said with a laugh. "They're scared that the girls will think it's too small or something. Trust me when I say, a girl usually thinks the opposite the first time she sees one. Isabel's told me as much, and I felt the same with Eren."

Hanji nodded in contemplation, "So, he's just worried I won't like it?" she asked to clarify.

Mikasa shrugged, "That's the most likely reason. You know he has a short man complex as well, I'm more than sure he feels the same about his manhood." she said with a giggle and a wink.

Hanji shared a giggle with her, though her thoughts briefly drifted to how she had (quite roughly) grabbed said manhood that morning. It was more likely he was scared of letting her touch it again. She almost snickered, but she bit her lip and nodded in acquiescence to Mikasa's insinuation, "Yeah, that's probably it."

•

•

"There in front of the crown, lay a c-" Isabel paused, "Lay a car-" she groaned and let her forehead fall against the paper.

"Isabel...you're really doing well." Hanji chuckled, lifting her head up so she could read the verse, "Carbuncle." Hanji corrected, returning to her crochet, of which she was developing skill in.

Isabel nodded begrudgingly, "Lay in carbuncle-stone," she continued, "-which in the palace fair, even as a taper seemed; on her...h-head the hair, was glossy and also fine. It shone as bright even as the sun's...sheen, sun's sheen." she finished, taking in a deep breath and laying back with a sigh.

"You only missed one word this time." Hanji said, patting her pupil's thigh assuringly. "We'll read the next verse later. Have you been reading your dictionary?"

Isabel nodded, "Armin and Mikasa help me. But some of the words I can't make sense of!" she said, flailing her arms.

Hanji giggled, "That's because the Abrogan Codex Armin owns still has a few Latin words in it. It's older than the one I learnt from." she explained. "You can ignore those, just read the German words."

Isabel nodded, "Alright." she placed the bookmark back into the page they were currently on in The Lay of the Nibelungs. It was Hanji's favorite fable, she was elated to find that Armin owned it. And upon finding so insisted that Isabel improve her reading skills through it, coupled with the Codex (dictionary).

She had Isabel read one stanza a day. Reviewing the whole page every few days. At least, that was the implied system. They hadn't been reading it long enough to go over a page yet.

There was an exclamation from downstairs, and both women looked up from their occupations. Hanji from the stitch she was making with the yarn, and Isabel from the Codex she had just pulled out. "Damn cat!"

Mia, said cat, came walking up the stairs, casual in her demeanor as she leapt up onto Hanji's lap and interrupted her work. "Hey girl." Hanji scratched lightly at the ebony cat's head and smiled when she purred.

Levi followed the cat shortly, "-slipped inside when I opened the door." he was saying as he ascended. He and Farlan had been out fixing a hole in the barn roof. Hanji looked up at him, and her smile widened when he sighed and pressed his fingers to his forehead.

"Is she not allowed inside?" Hanji asked, pointedly looking at her not-quite-lover while she pet the cat tauntingly, as if daring him to say no.

Levi removed his hand from his face and shook his head, "It's snowing anyway, I suppose."

Isabel nodded, looking back at her Codex, "Mikasa would be letting her in any day this time of year. Might as well let her in now."

Levi sighed, "Right." he glanced at Hanji, and she grinned when he stared at her. Eyes perusing her figure as if he were thinking of something. Something she could wager a guess as to what it might be. She placed the yarn and needle aside, lifting Mia in her arms while she approached him.

"Is that a plank in your pants, or are you just happy to see me?" she teased in a hushed tone.

Levi looked down anxiously to see if she was telling the truth, and scowled when he realized she was only flirting. "Don't do that." he murmured as he headed downstairs.

She followed, chuckling heartily as she adjusted Mia in her arms. "Aww, why not? If it wasn't there before, it is now. Besides, weren't you just thinking of me?" she asked. He stiffened at that and headed down the hall to his room. She grinned at having been right and made to follow him, but yelped in surprise when the door slammed shut and locked before she could. "Oi!"

"Give me a minute, Hanji." his voice sounded from the other side of the door.

"Oh...need a little help?" she offered teasingly.

"I'm not _touching_ myself!" he hissed back, his voice breaking on the word "touching".

"You sure about that?" she asked huskily.

"For fuck's sake!" he exclaimed, and she heard the bed creak as he no-doubt flopped against it in frustration.

"Oh, getting into bed? Well I guess I'll see you when you're done." she said loudly.

"Fuck you!" he called back.

She dashed away from the door, cackling and hugging Mia to her chest in delight. "I'd like that." she murmured to herself.

•

•

Hanji accompanied Mikasa on her morning walk, now. And she also took a walk by herself in the afternoons, leading Chance or riding him depending on her mood. It was quiet, calm, soothing. And now that it was snowing she also enjoyed catching snowflakes on her tongue or letting Chance gallop and kick up snow.

She took the time to think and to simply enjoy the fresh air. And on this particular ride, to reflect on Levi. He was a hard man to figure out, or maybe he just didn't like change. Because following both of their physical advances in their relationship, he went through a stage of...oh she didn't know how to label it. But she did know how to explain it: he would behave as though abstaining from her.

Following their first kiss it took him four days to kiss her again, and between that time he seemed to avoid her, aside from bathing. Granted, he did become rather friendly, cuddly even. But he was doing it again, after their little coupling a couple days back (and not including their conversation the day before), he started avoiding her again. She had a few ideas why, but she'd have to ask him, and she was just a little too scared to.

She stopped Chance in his tracks when she noticed the rider cresting the hill up ahead. And upon squinting she smiled knowingly, looking over her shoulder at the cabin behind her. A light kick to Chance's flanks had her trotting up to meet him.

"Hello, Eren." she greeted, turning her steed to be instep with his own horse.

Eren nodded to her, "Hey, Hanji." he smiled before looking ahead eagerly, "How has everyone been?"

"Well, quite well." she said, "Mikasa's missed you." she added with a wink.

Eren looked to the side to hide his blush, "Oh?"

"Oh come now! No need to be secretive around me, hun." she reached over to swat at his shoulder, "I know a lot more than you think about your relationship." she murmured to herself, just barely loud enough for him to hear.

He looked at her with a raised brow, "No offense, but that just sounds creepy."

She chuckled, "It does, doesn't it?" she halted Chance and dismounted, brushing snowflakes from her hair and eyelashes, "Well, I'm exaggerating, of course. Don't mind my antics." she said with a secretive smile.

Eren dismounted and led his own horse into the barn with her. "Alright, if you say so."

They took care of their horses in silence, and she was sure to finish rubbing down Chance _before_ he finished his own steed.

"I'll go let them know you're here." she said as she passed him on her way out.

•

•

"Eren's here."

Mikasa froze when Hanji said those words, eyes wide and terrified as she tried to mentally process the fact that she needed to tell him. And tell her siblings for that matter. "He is?" she squeaked, brushing her bangs away from her forehead as she began to pace anxiously.

"You going to tell him?"

Mikasa turned and hunched her shoulders, and Armin pat her shoulder before he left the room, muttering about stalling Eren.

"Mikasa?" Hanji prodded.

"I don't think I can." she gulped audibly, and Hanji gently hugged her from behind.

"I know you can. You know he's going to be ecstatic. And I promise I'll keep Levi passive." she assured, pulling back and spinning her friend around to face her.

Mikasa bit her lip, inhaling deeply to calm herself, "I'm so nervous, Hanji." she sighed.

Hanji nodded and gave her a soft smile, "I know you are. I would be too, I wager." she tapped on the underside of the younger girl's chin endearingly, "But you'll feel a lot better once you tell him, Mikasa."

"I hope so."

"Just do me a favor and tell me the same in the future." Hanji winked.

Mikasa nodded with a hesitant smile of amusement, and Hanji followed her when she left the room to go see Eren. The raven-haired girl faltered when she saw Eren, speaking with Armin, and her family sitting in the living room by the fireplace. It would be difficult to get his attention without also attracting theirs.

A gentle nudge from Hanji had her reluctantly shuffling forward on heavy feet. Armin glanced at her from over Eren's shoulder and smiled, gesturing subtly to his oblivious friend to turn around. Eren spun on his heel, grinning when he saw her, and she gasped when he was suddenly hugging her tight.

"Hey, you." he murmured against her shoulder.

"Hi." she said, voice small, and barely above the volume of a whisper.

"I missed you." he said as he buried his face in the crook of her neck and sighed.

She did likewise, smiling only just, "I missed you, too." she looked over his shoulder at her siblings, glad to see that both Hanji and Armin seemed to be distracting them from the blatant affection she and Eren were displaying. She pulled back enough to see those turquoise eyes she adored so much, and she tugged pointedly on his shirt as she took a step backwards. "Come here." she said quietly.

He seemed a little flustered, but he followed her lead without question.

She inhaled deeply as she sat him down on her bed, and then sat beside him after closing the door. Though she didn't lock it, they were only in here to talk, after all. Not that he seemed to know that, he looked rather confused, actually.

She gave him a brief smile, "So...I, um..." she began, trying to formulate the right words to say. "Eren, you and I, we're kind of...sort of..."

"Yeah?" he prodded, amusement evident in his eyes over how much she was stuttering.

"Don't interrupt! This is hard to say, alright?" she swatted at him and rubbed at her eyes.

"Sorry."

"Don't say sorry."

"Sorry. Uh-um, I mean-."

"Damnit Eren!" she exclaimed, pushing him hard enough - coupled with his laughter over his blunder - to make him fall back. She swiveled in place, crossing her legs and looking at him with an amused shake of her head. She took his hand in hers and brushed her thumb over the back of it, her smile softening. "I have something to tell you." she said, pulling his hand close enough to press a kiss to the soft underside of his wrist.

"Okay." he nodded, eyes glinting expectantly.

"Like I said, it's really hard to say." she stalled, screaming at herself in her head to: _'Just tell him damnit!'_

"Take your time." he chuckled softly.

She just kissed his hand again, this time on the knuckles, and a sly smile spread across her face as she came up with a way to ask him, "What's your favorite name?"

"What?" he tilted his head to the side incredulously.

"I want to know." she shrugged.

"Why?"

"Well we'll need to _name_ the baby won't we?" she countered, ducking her head as soon as she had said it. She heard him take a breath to speak, but instead of doing so he promptly choked on that very breath, coughed, and went entirely silent for at least a minute.

She looked up when her nerves finally got the best of her and initially cringed at the sight of his eyes so wide and startled like that.

"What?" he gaped.

She couldn't help the soft laugh that escaped her, he just looked so dumbstruck it was silly. "You heard me right." she bit her lip and tightened her grip on his hand, as if she feared he might pull it away because he suddenly hated her or something paranoid like that.

"You're pregnant?" he moved to prop himself up on his elbows.

She nodded hesitantly.

"When did you find out?" he asked, gaze fixed on her still-flat stomach.

"The day after you left, last week." she shuffled in place.

"Oh." he said, blinking as he let that sink in.

"So..." she drawled, starting to tremble in apprehension as she looked down at the quilt on the bed. He wasn't giving her any clues as to his opinion just yet. He didn't seem upset, but he wasn't acting happy either.

"So I'm going to be a dad." he finished for her, and she looked up at his abrupt chuckle.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing's funny!" he placated, sitting up fully and taking her hands in his, "I'm happy, really! It's not as if I didn't expect something like this. We were kind of reckless, and...yeah. I'm just a bit caught off guard at actually hearing it." he lifted her chin, "You can stop worrying now, you know."

She smiled and turned her head away in embarrassment, "I'm not worrying."

"Bullshit, Mika." he said with a grin, turning her head back to face him so he could kiss her. "Who else knows?" he asked.

"Just Armin and Hanji." she shrugged.

"Outstanding." he said sarcastically, but it was lost on her when he smiled like he did. She blushed when he stood and locked the door, "Still a while till dinner, right?" he asked as he coaxed her onto her back.

"What are you doing?" she asked with a grin, despite being fully aware of his intentions.

"Well, with news like that, and knowing how stressed you must have been this past week-" he shrugged, "-I think you deserve some time, _love_ , and care." he accentuated his statement with a soft kiss.

"Mm-fine by me." she responded with a giggle.

•

•

"Think it went well?" Armin whispered to Hanji.

They both stood in the hall and stared at the closed door, grinning like idiots. "What do _you_ think?" she snickered and turned away from the hall.

"I think it went _really_ well." Armin chuckled as he followed her.

•

•

 **A.N.**

 **Oh look I didn't do no cliché sob party for a pregnancy reveal to the dad! Yay! They cool, they cool.**

 **The poem Isabel was reading is a real, old German poem/fable called Nibelungenlied. And the Abrogans Codex is also real, ancient Latin-to-German dictionary, basically, pretty cool. The characters live in old Germany, and while I write them in English, I like to imagine they are speaking German.**

 **Mia is named after my brother-in-law's fat, lazy black cat.**

 **Writing this chapter I was a little hesitant. Thought maybe I should postpone any such content until our main pairing was more emotionally comfortable with one another. But, it just doesn't fit anywhere else in the future chapters. And I wouldn't really have anywhere to get a physical relationship started anyway, with what I've got planned and coming up. When it comes to Levi and Hanji's relationship. They have very physical personalities, these two. That's my basis for why they physically progress so quickly. They both prefer action over words. (In most cases for Hanji)**

 **Also: Levi is both self-conscious about his dick and a bit apprehensive after the Illustrious Dick-Grabbing of Chapter 8.**

 **Next time, hopefully sooner update cause writers block fucking sucks and I hope I'm over it now. More lemon slices most likely, and some development in the whole "Hanji's got a secret identity" department. Also the rest of the crew finds out about the impending baby-bomb. And Isabel wants Hanji to start using that damn bow!**

 ***Has successfully dwarfed all previous author notes***


	10. Chapter 10

**Well this took longer than expected, but it's almost as long as last chapter, so bonus!**

 **I moved out of my parents, and I live with my sister now, so I have a LOT more time on my hands to write, I'd expect chapters a little faster as of now.**

 **Doozy at the end of this one. Also another lemon slice, and everything promised in last chapter. A wee bit of angst because Hanji is an emotional girl...bleh I dunno why I write that shit...because reasons. But fluffy Levihan because of it so enjoy that.**

 **I _was_ going to mention last chapter because it correlated with the content, but the author's notes were far too long already, so I'll say it here. Did you know that people typically wore no undergarments in the set time of this story? Corsets, perhaps, if one was a rich woman, but for the general public, undergarments were next to unheard of. I didn't know that until I wrote last chapter lol.**

 **Also, now that I have a laptop I can lose the little dot separator thingies XD, enjoy the real separator bars.**

* * *

"So, how are we going to break this to your siblings?" Eren asked.

They should have been asleep, especially this late at night. But her restlessness - coupled with his contemplation - had them both up at the witching hour. Armin slumbering soundly in his bed across the room.

Mikasa kept shuffling in place, used to sleeping on her stomach, and quite irritated with her newfound lack of ability to do so. It just felt like there was something bulbous under her skin when she lay on her stomach...like she was squishing the baby or something. Yes, it was now more uncomfortable to sleep on her stomach, but she was still quite frustrated with her need to sleep on her back or side as of late. And as such, she often took a couple hours to fall asleep. More so when she could practically _feel_ Eren thinking while he lay beside her.

She had been about to scold him for thinking so loudly when he voiced his question.

"I only thought as far ahead as Levi." she murmured back, her eyes remaining lazily closed as her body tried and failed to find sleep. A smile of amusement managed to find its way onto her lips when he stiffened at the thought of it.

"And?" he prodded, tone underlain with anxiety over the matter.

"Hanji is going to tell him." she shrugged.

"Hanji?" he seemed almost incredulous, "I know it's a big prospect, but pawning it off on her seems a little-"

"I _didn't_ pawn it off on her." Mikasa turned to face him and stifled a giggle. "Silly boy." she leaned up to kiss him, soft and chaste, on his pouty lips. "She offered, and she'd do a much better job than you and I would in any case," she explained.

"How so?" Eren asked, thumb gliding gently over her bottom lip as he listened.

While it hindered her words slightly, she allowed it just out of sheer endearment for the gesture. "I don't know if you've noticed, but they're a little more than friends if you know what I mean."

Eren raised a brow, "Levi...and Hanji?" he said, most undoubtedly unconvinced.

"Oh come on, Eren," Mikasa chuckled, "It doesn't take a genius to notice the sexual tension between them. Also, Hanji told me herself that they've-"

"I don't _want_ to think of Levi doing those things if you can find a way to steer around speaking of it." Eren cringed, gritting his teeth as he made a show of forcing the image from his head. "If you say they're in a relationship I'll believe you." he placated with a soft laugh.

"Well, good." she sighed, "Like I said, it doesn't take a genius to see it," she repeated to cement her point. Snuggling closer to him and tracing his pronounced collarbone with her fingertips.

"Is that a polite way of saying I'm an idiot?" he swiped her loose hair back from her shoulder and then proceeded to caress her shoulder.

"Mhmm." she hummed, smiling when he kissed her forehead. "Not that I mind. I like this idiot."

Eren only chuckled in response, fingers moving down her shoulder, across her collarbone, and starting down her torso when _it_ inevitably happened:

"Can you guys _not_ do anything while I'm in here?"

As if on cue the blonde across the room spoke up. It was quite the norm, they'd tried being quiet while intimate with him present. But it was as if he had an internal clock that let him know every time Eren so much as touched her hip. Or maybe he was just a light sleeper and the talking is what always woke him? Neither truly knew, nonetheless, it was a more than a little annoying. (That's not to say they didn't love him regardless).

"Or at least tell me beforehand, so I can move to the living room." Armin rolled over to give them an apologetic smile.

"But that would kill the mood!" Eren whined, and Armin scoffed as he tossed his pillow at the other boy.

"Eren!" Mikasa chided mirthfully, "Sorry, Armin. We weren't doing anything unseemly, and we _won't_ be-" she turned to give Eren a secret grin, "-tonight, that is." she finished in a whisper.

"Heard that." Armin sing-songed, and was rewarded with a pillow to the head.

"Go to sleep, Armin!"

* * *

"Hey," a hand was shaking her out of her content, dreamless slumber. And when she opened her eyes Mikasa stepped back and held her hands out to placate her, "Whoa, sorry." she said nervously.

Hanji realized she was glaring, and - she wagered - likely looked like she was about to murder someone. She rubbed her face as she rolled onto her back, "No, no...I just didn't know it was you." she yawned. "What is it?"

Mikasa sat at the edge of her bed, voice a low whisper, "So, I told Eren last night."

"I could tell. I had to keep Levi out of the hallway, you know." Hanji teased with a sly grin.

Mikasa turned red and covered her mouth, scandalized, "Really?" she squeaked.

Hanji laughed, shaking her head as she sat up, "No, not really, I'm just kidding you." she said.

Mikasa sighed in relief...and then whacked her solidly on the shoulder.

"Ow!"

"Don't do that."

"Gee...don't worry, I won't...ow..." Hanji rubbed her shoulder and hissed at the sting, whilst Mikasa showed no remorse for her actions and continued on in her speech.

"Anyway, I wanted to tell you that you can tell Levi any time now. I'll take care of Isabel and Farlan." she said.

Hanji nodded, "Alright." she stretched her arms above her head with a groan of satisfaction. "I'll have to corner him somewhere..." she said to herself, pondering how she could go about this dangerous business.

"Thanks, by the way." Mikasa looked a little ashamed, "You really didn't have to offer, and I am more than a little afraid as to what he might do or say when he hears it."

At that Hanji grinned, "I think I have the solution for that." she murmured to herself.

"What was that?" Mikasa looked up curiously.

"Oh nothing, just talking to myself." Hanji swung her legs over the edge of the bed and smiled reassuringly at the younger girl before she stood to head downstairs.

"Ah...your pants." Mikasa pointed out.

Hanji turned with a gasp and ran to her nightstand with a giggle, "Whoops!" she laughed, pulling her pants on and _then_ proceeding downstairs. She made her way into Levi's room and halted herself when she found his bed to be empty. With a contemplative "Huh." she turned on her heel and checked the bathroom, also disappointingly empty. "Hmm." she hummed louder this time, determined and curious as to where the man might be.

She passed Mikasa, of whom was starting porridge for breakfast, and made her way outside, remembering last-minute to steal someone's boots for her mission. The air was crisp and laced with the scent of pine and snow. She took a moment upon stepping outside to admire the white mountains and slowly-freezing lake. Her breath came out in a frosty cloud, and it made her smile before she remembered her purpose for coming outside.

Luckily for her, the night's fresh snow allowed her to see exactly where her missing Shorty had gone. With a grin, she rubbed her glove-less hands together to warm them before she began her journey. She stepped in each individual footprint and hummed a little nursery ditty to herself, adding in the words at randomized intervals as she hopped from footprint to footprint.

"I didn't know you could sing."

Hanji fell backward onto her butt after losing her balance as a result of his sudden vocal appearance. He was leaning against the door of the barn, having obviously been watching her while she was occupied with following his tracks. "Shit! Cold! Cold!" she exclaimed as the ice seeped into her thin pants, immediately chilling her to the bone.

He scoffed and stepped out from the shelter of the barn to lend her a hand. "Thanks." she murmured as he hoisted her to her feet.

"Are you alright?" he asked as she stumbled into his hold.

She reached back to grope her soaked pants, rubbing her chilled rump and begrudgingly accepting his lead as he walked into the barn. "I was looking for you," she said as she squirmed, most uncomfortable with her predicament.

Levi gestured to the black mare he was currently attending to, and Hanji smiled softly at the rare endearment he tended to show to horses. He stroked her muzzle fondly and even let her lick affectionately at his hand. "The water freezes sometimes, I came out to break it up for them," he explained.

"That's very sweet of you." she cooed, leaning on her arms against the stall and watching him with an appreciative smirk.

He looked up at her and frowned, "Why were you looking for me?"

She rocked back on her heels and exhaled, "Well, I have a question for you. _Two_ actually." she said, waltzing around the gate and closing it behind her, leaving them both secluded inside the stall. The mare snorted and stomped a hoof in protest at the following swift movement. Hanji cornered the slightly shorter man with her hands loudly planted against the wood on either side of his shoulders.

"Is that supposed to be intimidating?" he asked with a raised brow.

"Somewhat," she grinned, leaning down to be at eye-level, "Question one: Why are you avoiding me?" she asked, accentuating her question with soft, yet heaving breath and a pointed glance to his inviting lips. Of which parted as he took in a sharp breath, and it was all she could do not to forget her questions and ravage him on the spot.

He looked slightly panicked, glancing from side to side and avoiding her piercing gaze best he could. She grinned when his resolve began to diminish, "It's no use trying to divert you, is it?" he asked, sighing and bringing a hand up to massage his temple.

"Nope!" she popped the P, and leaned in to kiss him on the nose, to which he wrinkled said appendage and gave her an irritated glare.

He crossed his arms and looked down...down her shirt, that is. He gave a subtle bite of his lip as he briefly appreciated her, and she smiled when he took the initiative to caress her collarbone. A slight shiver overtook her as he glanced up at her, "Because...I feel like every time we take a step, we're moving too fast." he began, returning his gaze to her torso and investigating a prominent freckle on her sternum, "Normal people don't get this far in less than three months of knowing one another, you know."

She mulled that information over in her head with a tentative nod, "I suppose you have a point." she conceded, grabbing at his open collar and tugging him close, "But," she added with a grin, "I don't think _we_ are what classifies as normal, are we?" she kissed him once before moving her lips to his ear and reveling in the shudder he gave. If this thrill was what he experienced when he serviced her those few days back...well, long story short: she could get used to it.

"Hanji," he murmured, grasping at her shirt. But he didn't push her away, not even when she took the soft skin of his earlobe between her teeth and nipped gently at it.

"Don't avoid me, Levi." she said, lips brushing against his jawline with the words. His pulse was rapid under the hand she had moved to cup his face. She inhaled deeply, lips barely touching his own as she met his gaze, his dark, shadowy gaze that begged her not to stop. "Please don't avoid me." she breathed, and he was tugging her into the kiss before she had the chance to lean forward.

The pure, raw need that radiated between them was intoxicating, all the more so coming from her Levi. Seeing the supposedly emotionless, grumpy, monotonous man behave so desperately nearly had her knees buckling at the force of her arousal. He was trying to spin them, to take control of the rapidly impending coupling, but she took it upon herself to switch it up. She grasped both of his hands and held them against the wood behind him, biting his lip in retaliation.

He pulled back enough to give her his customary raised eyebrow, and she simply grinned. "You had your fun last time...my turn, remember?" she kissed at his jawline, down his neck, and elicited a grunt from him when she rolled her hips into his.

"Hanji..." he huffed in annoyance, and she grazed her teeth over the base of his neck while her hands led his to her shoulders.

"Just...let me." she placated, kissing him once and waiting for him to hesitantly nod before she took a moment to admire his form, deciding what to do first. It was too cold out in the barn to undress, so she determined to slide her hands under his jacket and shirt. He didn't react much, but she enjoyed fondling his sculpted muscles most thoroughly, chuckling when his skin flinched and rippled under her touch. "Ticklish?" she asked.

He merely exhaled, breath slow and deliberately steady, given away by the slightest tremble of it.

"Mmkay," she murmured, mostly to herself, and slid her hands around his waist and down into his pants, "How's this?" she asked in time with the sudden movement. He jumped at the contact, having not expected it, and she hummed to herself as she indulged herself and squeezed the flesh softly.

"I thought you had two questions." he breathed, voice positively quivering as she lightly rocked her hips into his.

She sighed and lolled her head back in a childish, almost tantrum-like motion, "That question-" she said, "-isn't quite appropriate for these activities. Let me finish first." she used her scandalous grip on his ass to tug him closer, punctuating her words with a fiery kiss.

He scowled as she pulled back to flash him that mischievous grin of hers, "What does _that_ mean?"

"It basically means your little friend won't want attention anymore after I ask that question, and I want to have a chance with him!" she said in exasperation, pulling one hand free and bringing it around to cup him through his trousers.

He jumped at the contact yet again and grabbed her wrist. She frowned at his hesitance, wiggling her fingers against him just enough to make him shuffle back from her touch.

"What?" she prodded.

He gave a slight smile and shook his head as he thumped it against the beam behind him. "I'm just...getting flashbacks." he started to chuckle at his own words, and she stilled as it grew into full-out laughter.

He had the strangest laugh. It was so low in tone, husky, and almost intimidating. In fact, if she thought about it, it was akin to sinister in its tone. But it was also infectious, it made her want to laugh as well. And she did, especially once she realized what he meant by flashbacks.

They both dissolved into raucous laughter, a noise that was heavily unappreciated by their company in the stall. The mare nudged Hanji's back and made her stumble forward, ending their giggle-fit as they scrambled for stability.

"Oh Levi..." she sighed mirthfully, pressing her lips to his nose and smiling softly, "I think that's the first time I've ever heard you laugh." she added in an awed whisper, bringing her other hand up to caress his cheek with her fingers. His skin flushed under her touch, and she kissed him chastely at the sight of it. "And you know I'm not gonna grab it like last time." she said, wriggling her wrist to encourage him to let go.

He looked to the side and puffed out his cheeks as he exhaled, "Well..."

"Oh no...I think I scarred you for life." she murmured to herself with a chuckle.

"Hanji..." he groaned, covering his eyes with his free hand.

"If you're nervous-"

"I'm _not_ nervous." he corrected immediately, and she smirked to show that he wasn't fooling her.

"If you _were_ ," she continued, "I'd remind you that I said I'll be gentle." she assured, lightly fingering his waistband and waiting for his approval.

He sighed, shaking his head as he gingerly released her wrist, fingers lingering only just barely before he pulled his hand back and rested it on her shoulder instead. And she took that as her cue to finally begin. Though she was quite hesitant in her own right, her heart racing and her hand shaking as she began to take the same step he had taken with her days before.

She flinched back at the first of him that she felt, but his expression didn't change (yet). He stared right back into her eyes while she explored, and she bit her lip once more before she finally took him in her hand. So different from before, the brief feel she had gotten wasn't quite enough to acquaint herself with this part of him.

She carefully, lightly mapped him out, feeling both highly awkward and highly aroused as she did so. She also took a brief moment to wonder how _that_ was supposed to fit anywhere, and she bit her lip at the thought. He stifled a grunt, and her attention was back on his features as she resumed her groping.

A light stroke of her hand, and she paused when his face contorted, lips parting with his now heaving breath. She smirked as she realized she had found what he liked. And so, grip still gentle - yet firm - she continued the motion that had him slowly panting harder, along with an occasional gasp or groan. She pumped slowly, still growing used to the rhythm he was unwittingly teaching her.

It was intoxicating in an entirely new way, watching how her efforts affected him. Every noise that managed to escape him and every shuddering huff of breath he took had her on the edge of her figurative seat, waiting to see what he might do next. A stuttering gasp preceded his forehead pressing insistently against her shoulder, and she frowned at not being able to see his alluring face anymore. Though she did enjoy his warm breath against her skin...

She jumped when he spoke, so enthralled with her work she was.

"Faster." he huffed, his grip on her shoulders tightening when she paused to shuffle into a more comfortable posture. But she swiftly, and tentatively, heeded his request. His head thumped against the wood behind them, and she watched with eyes wide in curiosity as he finally moaned for her. It was a sight to behold, really. Her Levi, standing there all flustered, alternating between panting and biting back his pleasured noises, lashes fluttering against his flushed cheeks and mouth agape as he gasped for air.

Another moan, oh _God_...she could listen to that every day for the rest of her life. It was positively beautiful. In fact, in her own humble opinion, hearing that sound from him was nearly as euphoric as being the recipient of such treatment.

He began to erratically thrust his hips into her touch when she increased her pace yet again. She observed in fascination as he screwed his eyes tightly shut, choking on his breath and body spasming. She swallowed his final moan in a fierce, sloppy kiss when he seized up in her grip. And she gradually slowed her ministrations as he climaxed, drawing out his peak for as long as she dared before she removed her hand from his trousers. She brushed her fingers along his hip, caressing his back soothingly as she pulled back to admire her handiwork.

His eyes blinked open, shoulders heaving with his breath as he recovered, and drifting into the contented high of his aftermath. She kissed him again, briefly, sweeping back the strands of hair that had plastered themselves onto his sweaty forehead. She pulled back once more, and then she grinned in pride, "I wonder if I enjoyed that even more than you did." she said.

He scoffed, shook his head, and smiled, "Possibly." he shrugged and pulled her closer so he could take a moment to kiss her neck, softly and lazily. "I _might_ regret not letting you do this sooner." he admitted, sighing when she threaded her fingers through his hair.

"Good." she punctuated that word by tapping his nose with a finger.

He hummed contently and leaned back against the wood of the barn, hands laced together behind her neck, "So...what was the second question?" he prodded after a moment of thought.

She bit her lip and chuckled, "Well," she drawled, and then procrastinated by kissing him on the forehead, and he frowned as she move to kiss his cheek, nose, nibbled on his upper lip...

"What are you doing?" he murmured before she was muffling him with a firm, dizzying kiss to the lips.

She didn't give him long to recover before she dropped the question upon him, "I wanted to know: what's it like being an uncle?"

He was still a little out of it, reeling from both his climax and the kiss and he stared at her blankly while he processed what she had just said. She smothered a laugh behind her hand as she watched confusion flash across his features. "What?"

"I'll let you figure it out, Short-stack. I'm off to change these pants and get breakfast." she waved as she stepped away. And a brief glance to the stain on the crotch of his pants had her smirking (yet again) with pride, "You might want to do the same." she grinned.

He was still busy realizing what she meant by her question, and with a sharp gasp, he looked up at her, mouth agape (and not quite in the enticing way it was only moments before). "What?!" he exclaimed, wild-eyed and absolutely flabbergasted as she cackled and moved to run out of the barn.

"Bye!"

"HANJI! Get your ass back here!"

* * *

"Of all the irresponsible, stupid...gah!"

Isabel was pacing back and forth, hands on her hips and glare directed at the two shamed teens on the couch. Farlan didn't seem all too surprised by the confession, and he simply sat with his arms crossed and eyebrows furrowed with worry over his wife as she continued to pace.

Isabel covered her eyes and stopped, sighing deeply before she turned to her younger sibling and approached her. "Mikasa, I hope you know that I myself don't really care that you're pregnant." she said, kneeling before her and grasping her pale, cold hand, squeezing it as she rested her forehead against her knees. "I'm just surprised, and I worry about what others might think of you. I don't want you two to go through ridicule for your actions."

"It's not as if every other teen isn't fucking someone as well, Isabel." Farlan interjected.

Isabel rounded on him with a glare, "That may be true, but illegitimacy is another matter entirely, Farlan." she said.

Farlan shrugged, "Just saying, hun."

"We didn't mean for it...to happen that is." Mikasa interjected before Isabel could begin her impending lecture towards her husband.

Isabel thumped her forehead against her younger sister's legs and sighed, "I know, dearie. I know." she said, looking up at her, "And I didn't mean to imply that you had done this on purpose." she pat Mikasa on the knee as she spoke. "I just wish you had been more responsible, kept track of yourself or something."

Mikasa ducked her head and blushed, "I know."

Isabel turned to Eren, who shrank back in his seat under her intimidating gaze, "And you, boy," she stood, hands fisted at her hips, "I do hope you intend to take her as your wife. Most preferably before she shows."

Eren gulped and nodded, "Y-yes...I do intend to." he said, "If she wants me to..." he glanced sideways at Mikasa and calmed considerably at the sight of her loving smile and nod.

Isabel gave a curt nod of her own, "Good, now, as for-"

 ***BANG!***

All persons present jolted and turned to the door as Hanji stumbled in, cackling and tripping over boots too big for her as she made for the stairs. Levi was heard hollering after her, and then seen trudging through the snow past the window and around the back of the house shortly after.

"What was that about?" Isabel asked, shrugging at her own question seconds later, "Anyway, as I was saying," she continued, "I'd like to go into town and explain this development to your father, Eren."

"I can do it myself." Eren said, though he wouldn't mind terribly having someone else tell his father for him.

"Nonsense, I want to hear his opinion on the matter and be there to mediate." Isabel said with finality.

"Alright." Eren conceded easily, honestly relieved that he wouldn't be revealing this alone.

"We just went into town a week ago." Farlan pointed out.

"Yes, we did, and we are running out of flour again. I also want Hanji to come with us, she needs to get out of the house." Isabel said, "Speaking of Hanji, I'm going to go see just what shenanigans she has pulled on Levi." she turned on her heel and headed up the staircase, calling back as she left: "Go eat your breakfast, and wake Armin! He's sleeping in too late."

* * *

Hanji had just pulled on some new pants and was preparing to head downstairs when Isabel knocked at her door. "Hanji? May I come in?"

"Of course." Hanji opened the door with a smile and gestured for her redheaded friend to enter, sitting down unceremoniously on the bed with her. Isabel looked around the room and hummed, and Hanji studied her for a moment before she spoke, "You have something to ask me. Yes?" she prodded.

Isabel nodded, "Yes, I do." she shifted in place, "I was curious...how are you and my brother getting along?"

Hanji thought briefly back to the morning's activities and the same genre of activity the near-week prior. She blushed heavily and cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her neck as she formulated an appropriate answer. "He...I...we...we're doing well, actually." she hid a small grin as the memory of Levi's face whilst in the throes of passion invaded her mind's eye.

Isabel raised her brow, "You are?" she asked, suspicious of Hanji's flushed skin and shy demeanor. _"Really?"_

"Very." Hanji turned her head further so that Isabel couldn't see her expression.

"Hanji," Isabel said, voice laced with an accusation, "What's going on between you two?"

Hanji grimaced, "Well...should I start from the beginning?" she asked, finally turning to face her.

Isabel took in the younger woman's features. She was blushing red as a tomato, and her demeanor suggested guilt. "If you feel you should, then yes." she prompted her to begin and propped her chin upon her hand.

Hanji ran a hand across her face, "Well I _don't_ feel I should." she chuckled, "When it comes to Levi and me, we are...kind of, just a little...intimate?" she said, her anxious cringe notable in her voice as she awaited Isabel's reaction.

The woman in question blinked, a plethora of emotions were evident in her jade eyes as she contemplated the information she had just received. Isabel pursed her lips, glancing down, and then back up, "Is this your idea of a joke? Because if it is...then it's...actually pretty funny." she said.

Hanji quirked a brow, "No. I'm dead serious, Isabel." she held her hands up with a nervous chuckle, "It's most definitely not a joke."

Isabel nodded, "So, you're fucking my brother." she bit her lip, a slight smile breaking across her features.

"NO!" Hanji exclaimed, "I mean, I said we were _intimate_. I never said we were...were fucking." she clarified.

Isabel stilled, "Intimate...but not fucking." she said to herself, blinking again, "Why ever not?"

Hanji broke into a hesitant laugh, "You're not upset?"

Isabel laughed harder, "Why would I be? This is the best news I've heard since you joined our little family, Hanji." she said, pausing in her laughter to furrow her brow, "So why aren't you fucking yet?" she prodded.

"Isabel!" Hanji exclaimed in exasperation.

"What?! I want to know!"

"We aren't because we aren't. If we move too fast we might regret it...Levi agrees with me on that point." Hanji explained.

Isabel shook her head and exhaled, "Let me give you a piece of advice-" she placed her hand upon the younger woman's, "-the longer you wait, when you both want it, the more likely you'll regret that in itself." she said, "Heaven knows I wish I had given in sooner than I had with Farlan." she rocked back in her seat with a sigh.

Hanji blushed and crossed her arms, "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." she said with a huff of embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, I don't mean to embarrass you, dearie." Isabel soothed, "I'm just excited for you, and my brother." she continued on, "You have no idea how long we've been trying to get him together with a woman. He's turned away Farlan's offer of a whore more than once...I started to believe he might be into men for a time." she added with a raucous guffaw.

Hanji laughed along, rubbing her neck with a grimace at the thought. Not that she had anything against it, but the image in her head made her irrationally jealous of the imaginary male her mind had conjured up with Levi. Her Levi...

 _'That sounds a little possessive.'_ she scolded herself inwardly, _'It_ is _possessive.'_ she admitted with a slight shrug at her own thoughts.

"Regardless, I'm glad you told me." Isabel sighed to herself. "Now...I wanted to ask, will you come to town with us tomorrow?"

* * *

At first saying yes seemed like a good idea, but waiting outside Grisha Jäger's house while Isabel, Farlan, Mikasa, and Eren all spoke with the man in question, wasn't quite what she had in mind. Hanji sighed and tugged grass from the dirt, tossing the blades in her boredom. It was her decision though, to wait outside. She honestly would rather not be involved in such personal family matters anymore than she had. While her role was small and...wonderfully pleasant, it was still a little stressful.

Despite Mikasa's belief, the man took the news well, his only qualm was that she had sprung it on him the way she had. A way of which he refused to admit to Farlan's inquiry. He simply glared at Eren while the situation was explained in it's entirety to him, and then he gave a hum, turning on his heel and heading off to his room. In the morning he had told Mikasa the same as Isabel, that he didn't really care, and that as long as she and Eren kept whatever messes were made clean he would support them.

"Typical Levi." Hanji chuckled to herself, brushing her windswept hair back from her forehead and looking about the village. Children and people in general weren't out today, apparently - according to Isabel - it was a church day, and most were home enjoying Sunday dinners. The village itself wasn't all that far from their cabin, perhaps a couple hours. It was nestled down the mountain in a wide, farm-laden valley. It was nice, less windy than up in the mountains and the snow hadn't quite reached it yet. The day was overcast and calm, a soft breeze rather than the cold winds she was growing used to.

Hanji turned in place to consider the house, and after a moment hauled herself to her feet and decided she would take a stroll down the street and give the town a thorough once-over. The only thing that made it large was the spacing of the buildings, beside that, it was a rather small place, deserving of the title of Village. She walked south from the Jäger's and past the schoolhouse, down the dirt path from the higher elevation of land to the lower, and past the smithy.

She clasped her hands behind her back and hummed as she strolled, not quite aware of any destination just yet. She simply perused, window-shopping at the general store, and stopping to watch the farrier shoe a horse at the stable. He took the time to tell his stranger of an observer the process, and she listened in interest. She left when he had finished, making her way past the storehouses and the inn at the far end of the town, and then turning back to walk up the opposite side of the street.

She passed a bar, or a brothel, not that she could tell, as it was not at all busy, in any sense. She took the time to shrug her shoulders and assume the men who usually gambled, drank, or whored in that building took a day off for God just as any other man. And then she continued on without a second thought, making her way back up the hill and passing the few cabins that were built there, and back to the Jäger's, all just in time to find Farlan and Isabel on the porch, sitting and talking casually to one another.

"Where did you go?" Isabel asked as Hanji sat herself down on the grass again.

"I had a walk." Hanji said with a sigh of contentment.

"Was it a nice one?" Isabel offered her the mug of ale she was nursing.

Hanji waved it away and nodded, "It was. It's a nice day in general...and I don't need a horse in order to walk ten feet in the damned snow down here." she added with a chuckle.

Farlan held up his mug with a nod of begrudged agreement. "Aye, the snow gets rather deep up by our cabin." he said, "This time of year is nothing, though. Wait for the latter of the season, gets even worse."

"Lovely." Hanji groaned, with no shortage of sarcasm in her tone as she rubbed her forehead in a show of exasperation. She sat up straight and took a deep breath of the clear air, glancing at Isabel, "Did it go well?"

Isabel shrugged, "Could have been worse, could have been better. Grisha is upset with Eren. Not quite upset enough to yell, mind you...but then again he's never yelled has he?" she asked to Farlan, who gave a shrug of his own. "He was a begrudged, of that have no doubt, but those two have his blessing." she said.

Hanji nodded, "And what of Eren's mother?"

Farlan frowned, and Isabel shook her head, "I'd like to hear her opinion. But the woman has been dead for some time." she explained, "Damn shame too, I hear she was a wonderful woman."

Hanji nodded, cringing at the reminder of her own mother's early death. "I see." she murmured.

"In any case, Grisha has offered to have us stay for dinner. We'll eat and be headed back to the cabin before sunset if we can." Isabel said as she stood, heading inside without another word.

"You alright there, Hanji?" Farlan inquired as he stood.

Hanji gave a slight start and nodded, "Yes, I'm just a little tired." she said with a sheepish smile.

"Come on then." Farlan gestured for her to follow as he went inside, and she did.

* * *

Hanji sat down on her bed and exhaled long and low. She had...a fairly good time at the Jäger's, but she had a strange sense of depression as the night had wore on. Likely caused when she had been reminded of her mother. She curled her hands into fists, partially out of anger, and partially out of sorrow. Anger for her father, for never being one. Sorrow over the death she never truly got over. She couldn't bring herself to get over it, no matter the fact that she had gone so long without thinking of either of them.

She must have been poor company, fiddling with her utensil and staring at the wall. Whatever conversations were had were faded in her ears, as she wasn't paying attention. Grisha didn't seem to mind her quietness. He came across as a quite gentle man, soft-spoken and eyes kind. She had smiled as warmly as she might, thanking him when he confirmed her arm to be fully healed and muscles well recovered.

Isabel was raving the whole trip back to the cabin about how she would be teaching her archery, and Hanji agreed with soft chuckles and a nod. Upon arriving home she had headed upstairs claiming tiredness, and she _was_ tired. She fell back against the bed and hummed, rubbing her forehead.

"Everybody has bad days." she mumbled to herself, lifting her hand to inspect her fingers. There was a light rap at the door, and she groaned as she propped herself up on her elbows. "Who is it?" she called to the door, feeling far too lazy and emotional to go open it herself. The door opened and she raised a brow at Levi's incredulous expression. "What?"

He stepped in and shrugged, "No hello?" he asked with a calculating tilt of his head.

She gave a slight smirk, closing her eyes and falling back with a grunt, "Miss me that much?"

She jolted in place when he straddled her, knees on either side of her torso. She looked up at him and raised her brow yet again, shrinking back when he leaned in. "A little." he said, and she grinned. He was about to kiss her, and she was highly anticipating it, but he paused and studied her instead. "What's wrong, Hanji?"

She frowned and turned her head away, wondering if she were truly so opaque that he could see through her so easily. "It's nothing, I'm just tired."

He sat up, and she grunted at his full weight on her abdomen, "I thought you were the one telling me not to _'feed you that bullshit'_." he said.

She looked at him and furrowed her brow in frustration, "Damn you." she sighed.

"Damn _you_." he leaned in and kissed her briefly, "Now tell me."

"And if I said no?" Hanji asked.

"Then I'd persuade you." he said.

"How?"

"Hanji..." he groaned, grasping either of her hands and leaning in again. He gave her the most pathetic attempt at a pout, and it was almost enough to make her cave. "Please tell me."

She let her smile fall at that, and she looked to the side again, blinking as her eyes began to sting. "I'm just...I just need to..." she rasped.

"Hanji?" Levi climbed off of her and pulled her by her arms to a sit. "What are you doing?" he seemed quite unaware of how to handle her sudden change in emotion, evident in the way he knelt in front of her, hands held uncertainly in the air while he watched her face.

"I'm fine, it's just...my cycle, it's due soon." she sniffled the excuse and wiped at her eyes, and he grabbed her wrists again...gently.

"This isn't like your cycle, Hanji." Levi scolded, "You're genuinely upset."

"What makes you think you can tell the difference?" she asked, almost snapping at him, but not quite. He took his turn to frown, and she bit her lip as she mentally reprimanded herself for that response.

He sighed and looked down at her hands, held in his own, "Because I like to think I know you." he said.

She shook her head and scoffed, the action sounding like a strangled sob, "That's not fair." she said with a mirthless smile.

"And what is?" he asked.

She couldn't answer, so she simply hung her head, "Levi..."

"I suppose everyone has their secrets...as much as I wish you would tell me yours..." he trailed off, and then sighed, "If you don't want to tell me now-" he said, running his thumb over the backs of her knuckles, "-then at least tell me later. Please."

She gulped and nodded, "Thank you." she murmured.

"I'm not good at comfort." he brought her hand to his lips and kissed the palm, looking up at her with those steely eyes she loved so much, especially when they were so uncharacteristically warm like they were now. "But I don't like seeing you upset."

She nodded again, wiping at her eye with her free hand, and accepting his handkerchief with a scoff and a slight, hiccuping laugh. "I'm not upset anymore." she assured, discreetly blowing her nose.

"Then stop crying." he pulled her into a hug and she choked on her breath in an attempt to follow his request.

"I am." she breathed, nuzzling her nose against his shoulder.

"You aren't." he pressed a kiss to her neck.

"I _am_." she smiled.

"Aren't." he kissed her jaw.

"Am." she giggled.

"Are not." he pulled back to look her in the eye.

"A-mmm..." she smiled into the kiss, her words giving way to a soft hum of approval. Her compulsion to tell him the truth was abated, and she was glad of it, for now at least. She knew she would tell him eventually...or not, depending on how fate decided to play its cards.

"Oh wow! Go Levi!"

The exclamation had them jumping apart, more out of fright then anything else. Isabel clapped in the doorway, a smug smirk on her face for having caught them snogging like they were. "I'd tell you to get a room, but since you're already in the room, just close the damn door next time." she said with a teasing lilt to her voice.

"Fuck off, Isabel." Levi stood and scowled, "You don't see me telling you and Farlan off."

"Actually you do, Levi." Isabel inspected her fingers and pursed her lips, "And besides, I wasn't telling you off. I'm actually quite enjoying this new development." she said as she grabbed the door handle, "Don't let me interrupt." she grinned as she left.

Levi groaned and covered his face, "Damned woman." he sighed.

Hanji giggled softly, standing and walking over to her nightstand to sift through the drawer. She wiped the crusting remnants of her tears away and tugged her shirt over her head, tossing it to the floor.

"What are you doing now?" Levi asked.

"Dressing for bed." she replied, pulling out a looser bed-shirt, though strong arms were wrapped around her waist before she could put it on. "What are _you_ doing?" she smiled softly.

He kissed the bare skin between her shoulder-blades and she shivered, "Nothing." he said in answer.

"Hmm." she hummed, pulling her new shirt on when he pulled away, and making to slip under her blanket for the night. "No goodnight?" she asked as she tugged her snow-wet pants down, along with her boots.

In response he simply nudged her by the small of her back and slipped beneath the covers with her. "I think you could use the company tonight." he said in explanation when she raised a brow.

She nodded, shuffling closer to him and pressing her forehead to his collarbone, "Yeah." she sighed, "I think I could use some too." It was silent long enough for her to start to fall asleep, though he spoke just before she truly did.

"Hey."

She hummed in response, too tired to properly formulate words.

"You had a sword with you when we found you, you know how to use it?" he asked.

"For the most part." she mumbled.

"I'll teach you the rest, then." he said.

"Mmkay."

She thought she felt him kiss her forehead before she truly fell asleep.

* * *

"Hips go back like this!" Isabel corrected for the fourth, (or was it fifth?) time.

Hanji shifted her body again, and Isabel sighed, "What did I do wrong this time?" Hanji asked as she slumped.

"Go easy on her, Isabel." Farlan said as he walked by, "You took a month to master the stance." he pointed out.

Isabel huffed, "Yeah, yeah." she waved him away and returned her attention to Hanji, "We'll practice more after lunch."

"When do I get to shoot an arrow?" Hanji asked as she followed her begrudged teacher.

"No arrows. Not until I know you won't kill someone with them." Isabel said with a warning glance to her pupil.

"Alright." Hanji shrugged. She hadn't thought learning archery would be as difficult as it was, they had been practicing the stance and proper way to hold the bow for a couple hours now. "We actually have to do your reading after lunch. We skipped the past few days." she said with a smirk.

Isabel stopped just short of the door and groaned, "Right...sure...great." she said as she entered the house.

Hanji entered close behind her with a chuckle and stepped out of her boots and coat, hanging the coat upon the peg and placing the boots by the fireplace to dry. "It's not so bad." she said as she accepted their prepared lunch of smoked venison and buttered bread from Armin. The boy had taken over cooking after Mikasa woke up with nausea for the third time since they came back from town.

"You only say that cause you know how to read." Isabel grumbled as she ate.

"You know how to read, you're just perfecting it is all." Hanji said.

Isabel shrugged and mumbled something unintelligible under her breath.

"Stop grumbling and eat, you." Farlan ruffled the redhead's hair and moved to sit on the couch with a book.

Isabel rolled her eyes and glanced at Hanji, who smiled in amusement. Levi entered the house at that moment, having been gone since the day before on business Hanji wasn't quite sure of.

"Levi!" Isabel sprang from her seat and jumped him, as per the norm, and the man looked at Hanji in exasperation. "How'd it go?" the redhead asked.

Levi moved to sit on the couch across from Farlan and rested his elbow on the arm of it. "Lord Smith gave me the deed this time around." he held up a rolled parchment, and all faces in the room (beside Hanji, and of course Levi) lit up with bright smiles.

 _'Smith?'_

Hanji paled at the name, she remembered it well, the man was a good friend of her father's. Or at least he had been. She hadn't seen him in years, but her worst nightmare had actually come to pass: she knew the Lord in this particular province.

"I don't know if you are interested," Levi was still speaking, "But he asked whether we would be attending this year's festival."

"Of course we are!" Isabel exclaimed, "I even made a dress beforehand. Why? Will he be present?" she prodded.

"Apparently so." Levi shrugged.

"That's good, I enjoy his visits." Farlan said, "I would like to see him again."

"I'll go tell Mikasa." Armin grinned, running down the hall.

Hanji gulped when Levi looked her way, and she chewed the inside of her cheek in hopes that he couldn't hear her heartbeat from where she sat.

"And what about you, Hanji?" Isabel had followed Levi's gaze, "The festival is in a couple weeks. Wanna go? It's so fun! There's music and food and dance..." she added at Hanji's obvious hesitance.

Hanji stiffened, "Well...I...uh...I don't have anything to wear..."

"Two weeks is more than enough time to procure a dress, Hanji." Isabel chuckled, "Come along, I'll show you my dresses from past years, maybe I can lengthen one of the old ones for you. Your waist is about the same as mine, but you're so damn tall!" the woman said as she tugged Hanji from the table and up the stairs.

Hanji offered Isabel a meek smile, and then frowned as soon as the woman's face was turned. This was not good. This was awful! She was going to be thrust into reacquainting herself with someone who knew her since she was a little girl. Everything was going to fall apart. And she was absolutely done for.

 _'Oh God! What am I going to tell them?'_ she wondered to herself, thinking of each, individual lie she had told to garner their trust. Just how fake was her persona now? Her name was false, her history as well. The only truths she had were the feelings she possessed towards her new family, and towards Levi. What was she going to do?  
 _  
'And..._ 'she sighed inwardly, _"..what am I going to tell Levi?'_

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **So who guessed the Lord of that province would be Erwin? Hmm? Anyone?**

 **And yes, this means the reveal will be soon, probably next chapter, if it gets as long as this one did.**

 **Hanji is a steaming cauldron of panic right now.**

 **Also, I gotta say: MMMM I love writing Levihan sin...MMM MMM MMM! So yummy!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Oh BOY! This chapter is what I was dying to write the whole time I've been writing this story...cause I finally get to write next chapter now! WOOOO!**

 **You will be angry with me at the end of this chapter.**

* * *

She couldn't do it.

She had told herself she'd march right down there and into his room, tell him everything before _someone else_ did. But when it came down to it she balked, shutting her door and fisting her hands in her hair as she sunk to the floor and choked on her breath. "It's okay. It's okay." she panted, voice cracking and breath only quickening further.

"Can't go back." she gasped, "Can't go back."

She stood abruptly and paced, one hand loosely pressed against her forehead and the other propped on her hip. "Calm down." she told herself, repeating it even as her heart rate increased. The rational part of her brain suggested that Lord Smith might not even recognize her, after all, it had been at least five years since she'd seen him last...maybe less.

 _'But what if he does?'_

"UUGHH!" she groaned, smacking her palm into her forehead, "Shut up. Shut up!" she hissed at herself. "Calm the fuck down, Hanji..." she said as she knelt beside her bed and propped her head on her hands. "Can't lose it like this." she told herself.

She wouldn't. She wouldn't allow herself to keep this intense panic up. If she couldn't tell Levi, if she didn't have the guts, then the best thing to do would be to simply avoid Erwin Smith at this festival. In a town so small...it would be difficult, she was sure, but she would do it nonetheless.

She took a long, deep breath and exhaled slowly. _'That's better.'_ she thought to herself, closing her eyes in relief as her heart stopped it's anxious fluttering.

Hanji reopened her eyes and hummed as she stood, brushing her disheveled hair out of her face and reaching her hair band to tie it into it's customary ponytail. She was by no means truly ready for this, a confrontation with someone who knew her. But either way, it was unavoidable at best. All she could possibly do was prepare.

* * *

"Better, much better." Isabel said, checking Hanji's stance from every angle, "You have issues keeping your arm up proper with the string taut. Elbow high, move so the strain goes in your back, not your arm." she instructed, and Hanji moved her arm accordingly.

"Like this?" Hanji asked, tossing her head to get the hair out of her face.

"Yes." Isabel smiled, "You'll be able to shoot an arrow soon. Just remember the stance well, you'll strain yourself or kill someone otherwise." the redhead nodded to signal for Hanji to lower the bow.

"Heh." Hanji scoffed, "I'll sure remember that." she put the bow down against the barn wall and leaned against it as she drank the offered cup of water from Isabel. "It wasn't all that tiring, you know." she said in reference to the water in her hand.

"Of course not, it wasn't for my training." Isabel gestured to Levi across the way and sitting on the small porch of the cabin. "He said he was gonna be training you in swordsmanship." she explained, "Don't gulp the water, you'll be moving around quite a bit if I know Levi."

Hanji nodded, "Alright." she bit her lip and glanced to the side, her internal conversation from the morning coming back to her.

"He trained me, you know." Isabel said, gazing at her older brother in admiration, "And Lord Smith trained him." she added on.

Hanji shuffled in place and gulped, "You know this...Lord Smith...well, then?" she asked, looking down at her feet.

"Aye, he's a good man, particularly so for a Lord. He took a liking to Levi when he first stumbled upon us. A few dirty young teens and two little kids run away from our orphanage." Isabel said with a chuckle, "Insightful, is how I would describe the man. Intelligent too. He saw potential in Levi, and offered us safe hold here while he trained him."

"So...why did you have to pay him off for the deed?" Hanji asked in confusion.

Isabel tilted her head and hummed, "Levi didn't see it as right to have this land for nothing, and Erwin was appreciative of that, spoke about how honorable he was and shit like that, only made him like Levi that much more." she said, "Levi went off on little odd jobs for him and other Lords, it's how we got into the mercenary work. He would come back and teach us, give his earnings to Smith and soon enough he brought us with him on his trips, after two or three years."

Hanji nodded, glancing at Levi in contemplation. She did think she had recognized his voice when she first met him, only a little...perhaps that was why? Perhaps she had heard a few years ago him in her home, back in Macedonia, while he possibly dealt with her father?

 _'That makes a lot of sense, actually.'_ she thought to herself with a hum of surprise.

"Are you done gossiping about me?" Levi asked, and Hanji jolted out of her reverie with a gasp.

"We weren't _gossiping_." Isabel scoffed, "It was just a bit of history."

"Right. Whatever." Levi said, handing Hanji a wooden sword.

Hanji chuckled, "Where'd you get this?" she asked, looking it over. It looked worn with age and was chipped in some places.

"Oi, that was mine wasn't it?" Isabel stepped up and grasped it by it's blunt blade.

"Yes, it was." Levi said, holding up a wooden sword of his own, "Now get out of my hair so I can get on with it." he used his sword to smack his sister on her rear as she fled, making her squeal and cackle.

Hanji giggled to herself and brushed her bangs behind her ear, blushing as she studied Levi's profile. Her eyes glazed over his nose, small and slightly pointed, and incredibly adorable. At least she thought so. And his eyes, intimidating and cold steel when she first met him, but beautiful and delightfully warm grey to her now.

She was admiring his delectably kissable lips when he turned to face her, and she jumped at having been caught ogling.

"Were you staring at me?" he asked, his lip quirking at one end only just slightly.

Hanji recovered from her embarrassment quickly, "Oh shut up, I'm not going to dignify that with an answer and inflate your ego any further." she said with a smirk.

Levi pursed his lips and shook his head, fighting a smile most diligently. "Don't look at me like that, we're meant to be sparring not snogging." he said as he walked away, "Come on then."

"I'd much prefer snogging." Hanji said as she followed him, a smug grin spread across her face.

"Hanji..." Levi said in warning, turning to her with his lower lip tugged between his teeth and his gaze in any direction but hers, "You're pushing it." he said.

"I like pushing it." she shot back.

Levi sighed and looked at her, obviously weary of her teasing.

"What?"

"Stop it." he said, weighing the wooden sword in his hand, "What do you know of swordsmanship?" he asked.

"Only what I've observed." Hanji shrugged, most pointedly eyeing him up and down and smirking as she spoke.

"Show me, then." Levi held his sword up, grip firm and pose elegant as he pointed it at her expertly.

She nodded and adjusted her own grip on her sword, putting one foot forward and turning her body sideways, mirroring his pose and holding her wooden blade up with a slightly shaky hand.

Levi examined her, raising a brow, "You're just mimicking me."

"No I'm not!" she said, dropping the sword's end to the snow and rolling her eyes, "It's what I saw other men do in training. I'm mimicking _them_ , not you." she said as she raised her blade again.

"What other men?" Levi stepped forward testily, sword raised, scaring her enough to make her step back once.

"Are you _jealous?"_ she giggled, gasping and nearly tripping over her feet when he tapped her sword with his.

"Stance steady!" he instructed, "And no, I am not." he said, demonstrating his stance once again for her.

Hanji corrected herself and readjusted her grip on the sword, blocking his next hit only just barely. The sword was knocked out of her hand seconds later and a wooden blade pressed softly against her throat. She gasped at the motion, and Levi's proximity. "That's not fair," she said, breathless, "You're supposed to be teaching me."

He narrowed his gaze, "I _am_ teaching you." he said, "You need to learn how to dance on your feet, block me, even strike me." he stepped closer and removed the sword from her neck and tugged her down by her collar, "You won't learn if I treat you like glass." he murmured.

She nodded, eyes fixed on his lips.

"So..." he turned away and picked up her sword, handing it to her and walking a few feet away before he spun on his heel and resumed his stance, "Ready to learn?" he asked.

"Yes." she breathed, biting her lip and glancing down hungrily.

"Don't look at my cock." he reprimanded.

"I'm not looking at your cock!" she defended.

"Well there's nothing else down there for you to look at, so what else am I to make of it?" he said with a scoff.

"I'm focused! I'm focused!" she exclaimed, "Just have at me!" she said, raising her sword.

Only to have it knocked out of her hand again.

"You need to build strength in your arms. No matter what Grisha said about your muscles or whatever." he sighed, "Pick it up."

They sparred for nearly a full hour, and by the time she finally dropped her sword for good she was lathered in sweat under her cloth and furs, hair plastered to her forehead and breath heavy as she dropped to her knees. She was well battered and bruised, having not landed a single blow on Levi, but sustained many herself.

"Not bad, Hanji." he said as he approached her, tossing his sword down beside hers.

"I didn't hit you at all." she panted.

"It's not about hitting me. Not right now." he said, kneeling down on one leg and lifting her chin, "Right now you just need to focus on your stance, your footwork, and not letting _me_ hit you." he said.

She nodded and exhaled sharply, "Right."

He smiled a little, "Tired?"

"Yes." she sighed.

"Sore?"

She hummed in an affirmative.

"Good." he said, kissing her on her forehead.

"So can we snog now?" she asked with a grin, chuckling when he groaned and hung his head. "Can we?" she prodded, shuffling to her knees to be at eye level with him. She was teasing...partially. But regardless she still tugged him in closer and nudged her nose against his. "Hmm?"

He didn't resist her, thank goodness, and she kissed him with fervor, tugging him down hard enough to make him fall on both knees. In retaliation he pressed forward, in every sense of the phrase. Though his vigor was a little too much at that particular moment, and she lost her balance, unprepared. She yelped as she tumbled backward into the snow.

"Ahh! That's cold..." she hissed as the snow began to seep into her thinner layers of clothing. Coupled with her sweat, it was in no way pleasant. "I'm gonna get all wet now." she scolded as he straddled her and pinned her hands by her side.

"Are you now?" he murmured, and her breath hitched.

"Oh..." she breathed when she realized her own implication. He smiled, steely eyes hooded and dark with desire. "Erm-" she interrupted when he began to reach for her pants, "-my cycle...it's...um..." she shrugged.

He scoffed and kissed her, "Thanks for getting me riled up then." he scolded and moved his lips to her jaw.

"Sorry." she said with a blush of embarrassment, "I forgot about it till now."

"Don't worry, I'm only teasing." he said.

"You never sound like you're teasing." she pursed her bottom lip in a pout.

"Well I am."

"You know, it's really cold." her body shivered as if to prove her point.

He stood up and off of her at that, hoisting her up and nudging her towards the house. "Go change and sit at the fire." he said.

"Alright." she nodded, turning around last minute for one more kiss, soft and simple, before she headed inside with a contented smile upon her face.

* * *

"He kick your ass, then?"

Hanji looked up in surprise when she registered that the voice belonged to Mikasa. "Uh...well, yeah." she admitted with a ting of hurt pride seeping into her voice.

Mikasa sat down and chuckled softly, "Don't be embarrassed," she said, "He kicked mine too, Isabel's, Farlan's, and Eren's, when he taught us."

Hanji smiled, "He taught Eren?" she asked.

Mikasa shrugged, "He liked him well enough until he got old enough and started taking a liking to me...and I to him. You know how brothers are." she said, grunting as she lifted her feet up onto the couch beside her and rubbed the sole of one of them.

Hanji nodded, "I wouldn't know." she said with a slight smile.

"Right, sorry." Mikasa grimaced.

"Don't be, I don't mind it." Hanji tugged her blanket together over her chest and shuffled closer to the fire, "I'm kind of glad of it. I'd worry, I reckon, if I had siblings."

"Well of course you would." Mikasa giggled, "All siblings worry."

"I suppose that's true." Hanji hummed, leaning back in her chair with a sigh. She glanced up at Mikasa and tilted her head, "So, are you and Eren going to marry?" she asked.

Mikasa blinked, "Well...yes. Soon, if all goes right." she said, looking down at her stomach, "Probably sometime during the festival."

Hanji squirmed slightly at the mention, reminded of her inner turmoil. "How long is it?"

"Hmm?"

"The festival." Hanji clarified, "Is it a night or does it span many?"

"Oh." Mikasa nodded, thinking it over, "About two days, give or take depending on various circumstances." she said.

"And what does it celebrate?" Hanji asked, tugging her hair out of the band and running her fingers through it to untangle the knots.

"Well, it won't be long before everyone down there is all shut up in the house over blizzards and such. It's really just the people getting together and having fun, warmth and food before it's gone for the next few months." Mikasa explained.

Hanji nodded, "I see."

"Everyone down in the village is really nice." Mikasa continued, "I've grown to know them well over the past few years. You'd like the innkeeper, Abigail."

"Pardon me."

Both paused in their chat and Mikasa allowed Eren to sit beside her, lifting her legs and draping them over his lap while her back rested against the arm of the couch. "As I was saying, you'd like her." Mikasa said, turning her head to look at Hanji. "She's very jovial, more so than Isabel. You can't grow bored listening to her."

"You talking about Abigail?" Eren asked, chewing on some smoked venison.

"Don't talk with your mouth full!" Mikasa thwacked him upside the head, "How do you expect to raise a child with no manners?" she scolded.

Eren swallowed his mouthful and snickered, "Sorry Mika." he said.

Hanji smiled, "She sounds nice." she said, "Abigail."

Mikasa gave a smile of her own, "I'll introduce you to her when we go down there." she said, "She's also a wonderful cook, taught me most of what I know."

Hanji nodded, biting her lip and looking back to the fire as she tuned out the rest of Mikasa's words. If she couldn't even go one day without cringing inside every time the damned festival was mentioned, how was she going to last two whole weeks?

* * *

"Ahh! Levi..."

Well, that was a way. Not that she was complaining. In fact, she hadn't thought of her anxiety at all today, despite having done so constantly for the past four days. After all, it's hard to be anxious when your not-quite-lover has their hand down your non-existent pants.

Levi had jumped her early that morning, after an _extremely_ subtle greeting and those obviously desiring eyes that she was growing used to seeing from him. Perhaps he had one of those delectable dreams that she was having increasingly often recently. She wasn't too concerned with why, though, her only thought being that he had better not stop.

He hoisted her up further against the wall and she bit her lip to keep quiet, failing miserably to do so. "Oh God...mmm!"

"Shh!" he scolded, pressing his forehead to hers and adjusting her leg around his waist, " _I_ may like hearing this, but I doubt Isabel and Farlan will." he said, crooking his finger inside her and smirking when she slapped a hand over her mouth to muffle herself.

"It can't be _that_ good." he said incredulously, "It's nothing special." he repeated the motion, and she jerked in place, whining softly.

"Ah...you...wouldn't know." she huffed, "Stop talking and just keep doing that." she demanded.

"Doing this?" he said, crooking his finger repeatedly, and she gasped, seizing up and her body convulsing once or twice.

"Shit...oh shit..." she panted, slumping back against the wall and dropping one leg from his hip to keep herself propped up.

"Feeling better?" he asked, using his clean hand to brush her sweaty bangs from her face.

"What?" she murmured, "Better?"

He shrugged, "You've been..." he paused to look for the right word, "...depressed. Anxious? I don't know."

She opened her eyes and looked at him, "You could tell?" she asked, a slight smile upon her lips.

"I told you, I like to think I know you." he said.

She hummed appreciatively and kissed him, toying with the longer hair at the back of his head, "I think you do." she sighed, kissing him again, "And I appreciate it, very much so." she said with a smile. "Thank you."

He stepped back, and she followed, planting herself on his lap when he sat at the end of her bed. "So is that a yes?"

"Yes." she kissed him once more before she hugged him tightly.

A knock on the door had them jolting, though it stayed closed as the intruder spoke, "You might as well move into his room, right Hanji?"

"For fuck's sake, Isabel!" Levi exclaimed, "Leave us be for once."

"Just saying, you'll benefit from it." Isabel called as she walked away, her footsteps receding down the stairs.

Hanji kissed his shoulder, "Don't mind her, she gets a kick out of your reaction, you know." she said, Isabel had told her as much after all.

"Of course she does." Levi sighed, "Less so now that you're here, I suppose." he stroked her clothed arm, glancing up at her.

"It's cause I entertain her, lucky for you. I suppose you ought to thank me now. Don't you?" she grinned cheekily, tracing a finger down his chest and lightly tugging at the ties of his shirt.

"You're not tired?" he asked.

"Of course not!" she scoffed, "I'll have you know I could go at you all day, if you allowed it." she leaned forward to nip at his neck, suckling lightly like he had to her the first time.

"Could you?" he gave a scoff of his own, a light hum of pleasure escaping him when she laved her tongue over his pulse.

"I could." she confirmed, sitting back and grinding against him purposefully.

He stiffened and grunted, hands moving to her hips to hold her in place. "And what about your practice today?"

"Fuck practice, I have all the time in the world for that." she chuckled.

"You won't get better if you skip lessons." he chided.

"Only one lesson lost, it won't stunt my growth." she shrugged.

"Yes it will." he said, "Not that I care." he rolled them over and she yelped, dissolving into giggles when his fingers found her sides.

"Hanji, Mikasa said to-oh God! Shit!"

Levi looked over his shoulder and glared at Armin, who was covering his eyes and turning his head away.

Hanji tugged her shirt down over her privates and chuckled in embarrassment, "Tell Mikasa I'll be right down, Armin." she instructed.

"Right, sorry." Armin nodded behind his hand, "I didn't see anything, by the way." the poor boy added as he made his escape before he was accosted (or more like brutally murdered) by Levi.

"Which translates to: _'I saw your cunt cause your lover didn't lock the damn door'_." Hanji smirked up at Levi, who turned his scowl on her. "Like I told you to, by the way." she added.

"Shut up and put some pants on."

* * *

The rest of the wait passed swiftly, with the occasional coupling between her and Levi every now and again. She improved in both sword skills and archery, though Isabel often told her that she "-couldn't hit the broad side of a barn at ten feet." She didn't mean it, of course, but Hanji was better at swordplay than the bow. A fact that made her exceedingly jealous of her brother for all the extra time he spent with Hanji.

To which Levi often responded with a scoff and a firm kiss when Hanji told him of it. And so she did often, if only for the chance of a snogging. He was distracting enough that she had forgotten about the festival about four or five days before it actually came back to bite her in the ass. So when she woke up to the dress Isabel had hemmed tossed in her face, she had to reconcile with her anxiety all over again.

"Wake up, sleeping beauty!" Isabel said, opening her curtains and letting the sunrise beam in. "Today's the festival. Everyone will want a bath, so I suggest you take yours while Levi still has claim on the washroom." she said with a smile as she headed out the door, "Don't dally!"

Hanji rubbed at her eye as she sat up, a little bewildered and entirely flustered. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood, pulling some pants on loosely to preserve her modesty before she followed Isabel's advice and headed downstairs. The bathroom door would be locked, she knew, so she slipped into some boots - her own this time - and went around the back.

"Hey Levi." she said as she burst in, and he was taken aback, giving a most satisfactory yelp and spinning in place in the tub. "Oooh." she said, followed with a low whistle, "I wonder what you've been hiding in your pants." she approached the tub and planted her hands on the rim, peering in only to have her scandalous view blocked by his hands in his lap.

"Hanji!" he hissed, giving her his customary scowl and gesturing loosely with his shoulders as if to say _'What the fuck are you thinking?!'_

"Awww!" she cooed, pursing her lip in a pout, "And here I thought I might see it after you've seen my womanhood so many times." she said.

"Three times." he said in correction.

"That's still three more times than I've seen your cock, Shorty." she held up three fingers and then let her hands fall in the water, swishing it around.

"Don't call me Shorty."

"But you're mine, aren't you? I can call you whatever I want." she said with a smile, reaching her hand forward to toy with his bottom lip.

"Who ever said I was yours?" Levi kissed her thumb.

"Nobody." she slid her opposite hand around his neck and pulled him in for a chaste kiss, "I simply assumed as much."

He sighed, exasperated, "Fair enough. I'll be done in a minute. Can you just give me that minute, please?" he asked, "We're in a hurry and we don't have time to cater to your desires right now. Even if I may share them."

"Right." she said with a nod, standing to pull her shirt over her head and her pants around her ankles. "I'll just hop in then. To save time." she stepped into the water.

Levi jolted and stood, "Hanji!"

"Oh...wow." she grinned, chewing on her lower lip as she took him in. He realized only a second too late that he had removed his hands. And so he turned around and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Ohh that's just as good." she hummed to herself, reaching forward to pinch his ass, and she cackled when he kicked water up at her.

"For fuck's sake." he sighed, running his fingers through his sudsy hair and looking at her over his shoulder.

"By all means, continue." she gestured toward him, and she raised a brow when he furrowed his, " Please, I'm only bathing, Levi." she said with a smug grin, already lathering the soap bar against her arms and chest. "I can't promise I won't ogle you, but I'm not going to jump your pretty bones, I swear." she said.

"If I know you, you'll jump em anyway." Levi grumbled, sitting down and dunking himself under to rinse his hair.

Hanji laughed, shaking her head and closing her eyes as she lathered the soap into her hair. _'God, I love him.'_

* * *

Her dress was simple, folksy...pretty. Not golden in color, shimmery and laced with gems or silver like the last dress she wore, but soft grey and blue with a wide skirt built for vigorous dancing. Isabel had fine taste in her dresses, Hanji would say that much. She apparently liked the shoulders bare, just as Hanji did, and the neckline swooped low enough for Hanji to feel a little self-conscious, but not enough to let the cold in.

She admired herself in Isabel's mirror, the only one in the house, and hummed as she turned around and looked at her rear, a slight pout appeared on her lips when she realized the material didn't hug it as tightly as she hoped. And she couldn't tease and rile Levi with it.

"Oh well." she sighed.

"Oh well?" Mikasa stepped out from Isabel's closet and smoothed down her dress, heather grey and rimmed with black on the sleeves and skirt.

"Nothing." Hanji spun in place and tilted her head, mouth quirked in a smile, "Aww, Mikasa!" she cooed, stepping forward and feeling the fabric of the girl's dress. "You look lovely."

Mikasa blushed, fingering the black sash on her stomach, "I had to adjust it for my belly." she said.

"Oh come now, I can barely tell the difference. And besides, even if I could, there's no need to feel bashful over it." she smoothed Mikasa's hair back and began gathering the raven colored, thick locks into her hands.

"What are you doing?" Mikasa asked.

"Putting your hair up." Hanji answered, brushing the younger girl's (curled) hair with Isabel's brush and pulling it into an elaborate up-do. She learned how to do it when she was younger, both to herself and others. It left the bangs out and framing the face while the rest of the hair twisted up into a bun, the leftover draping down and over one shoulder in a loose curl.

Hanji pinned in in place and then maneuvered Mikasa over to the mirror. "What do you think?"

Mikasa smiled, "Where did you learn to do that?" she asked.

"My hair used to be longer, I had to deal with it somehow." Hanji said with a wave of her hand.

"Oh?" Mikasa turned around, "How long was it?"

Hanji hesitated, but she tapped her hip to show how long it had been before, "Pretty long."

"Wow!" Mikasa exclaimed, "That's longer than mine. Why did you cut it?"

Hanji spun on her heel and winced, "Eh-um, I was tired of it." she said.

"Oh, yes I can imagine that." Mikasa said with a shrug, "Everyone is waiting downstairs. What do you say we go dazzle our men?" she bumped hips with Hanji as she headed towards the door.

"Did you steal that line from Isabel?"

"Yes."

Both girls chuckled as they descended the stairs, and Hanji locked away Levi's expression upon seeing her with the most tender, loving care. Adoration was too light a word to describe it. She went with awestruck, and she kissed him when he took her hand, despite their company.

Isabel and Farlan both hooted and whistled, and Hanji broke away in embarrassment. Isabel herself wore a dress styled similarity to hers, but in a dark, forest green rather than the blue and grey of Hanji's dress. Shorter as well, to accommodate the woman's petite figure.

The men, including Armin and Eren, were dressed well, likely more so than the townsfolk might be, due to their circumstances. They all had black jackets to accentuate white or grey shirts, and Levi wore a cravat, one that Hanji started toying with the moment she saw it.

"Are we all ready, then?" Farlan asked, holding his elbow out for Isabel, "The wagon is outside."

"Wagon?" Hanji questioned, having never seen one around the cabin, or in the barn for that matter.

"I went down and borrowed it from Doctor Jäger yesterday. He always lends it to us before the festival." Farlan explained.

"Riding in dresses in a nightmare." Mikasa said in a hushed voice.

"You can say that again." Isabel looked over her shoulder to say.

Hanji nodded, she knew that quite well, growing up as a Lady. She smiled at Levi when he hoisted her up into the back of the wagon, and he went around the front to sit with Farlan and help guide the horses. She sat down just behind the front seat with Isabel on one side and Mikasa on another. Armin and Eren sat on the sides, chatting away just as much as the women.

The ride down was a little tiring, given that it took so long. But they made it to the festival before Hanji decided she might go mad with boredom. She had never been so happy to step off of a wagon, or carriage rather, but who cares of the difference? The village was bright with stringed, colored lanterns and torch poles. A wooden platform was in the middle of town, large and full of dancing, jovial townsfolk already. Near the inn there were many tables and chairs and all were lined with food and drink.

Hanji took it in, used to balls and sophisticated, slow, calculated dances, vintage wine and behaving prim and proper. This was freeing, to see people drink ales and women kick up their frilly skirts while dancing. To see a band with guitars and percussion rather than a pianoforte and various stringed instruments. Some of those same instruments were present, but far more upbeat than she was used to.

Overall, the festival easily painted a genuine smile upon her lips, and she followed her company's lead without hesitation, leaping into the fray and forgetting her fears all too easily. "This is beautiful!" she murmured, awed and captivated by the entirety of her surroundings.

"Are you hungry?" Levi asked.

She turned, slightly startled at the reminder of his presence, "Yes, famished." she said with a soft smile.

Levi led her around the dancing and the people who conversed on the outskirts of the dance floor. And she was greeted with the tables she had seen from afar. "Eat what you will, Abigail has the whole village more than covered." he gestured to the tables littered with food and drink, along with plates and utensils at each of the tables.

There were around seven tables, each comprised of many small tables and pressed together to equal the length of the inn, which was easily larger than the cabin they lived in. Hanji hardly noticed Levi leaving her side, and she hastily made herself a plate of vittles. Some venison and many cooked, root vegetables, along with a roll of bread and a cup of wine. She sat down and ate, watching the dancing.

At some point she met Abigail, the woman was kind, her hair bright red and her figure slimmer than she had imagined. She spoke with her for a time, listening to various funny stories from her life. Hanji quite enjoyed speaking with her, though the woman had to take her leave after nearly an hour of speaking. At that point Hanji looked around and realized that in her distraction, she had lost sight of her companions.

Not that she couldn't find them easily. Eyeing the crowd, she spotted Mikasa and Eren, who were talking with Grisha, Armin was speaking to a blonde girl she hadn't ever heard of, and Isabel and Farlan had wasted no time in joining the dance. As for Levi...

She glanced around a few times, frowning as she finished her last bite and standing up to better spot him. She sipped at her wine and hummed, turning from the festival to look at the stars. She observed them for a moment, and then jolted when someone tapped her shoulder.

"Yes?" she spun on her heel, expecting a stranger, and gasping when she recognized the man before her. The one man she was hoping to avoid during the festival.

He wasn't as tall as she remembered, but she was younger the last time she spoke with him. He seemed to have barely aged a day, then again, he was a rather young Lord when she first met him. His blonde hair and blue eyes were not easily mistaken, along with his casual smile. He seemed amused at her reaction, and she gulped as he observed her. Especially fearful when he stepped close enough to speak in a hushed tone.

"Lady Titania, it's surprising to see you here." he gave a courteous nod of his head, and she trembled.

"Lord Smith..." she breathed, her body dissolving into a shivering mess as she fought to stay composed. He took her hand and kissed it, as was the customary greeting between lords and ladies.

"Zoë Titania, heiress to the Titania estate and supposedly ' _kidnapped_ ' three months ago..." he said, turning to face the crowd in a show of normalcy. "And here I find you, nearly a month's ride away from home, celebrating the local festival."

Her body quivered, and her wine sloshed in the cup from how violently she was shaking. "I-Lord Erwin...I don't-" she stuttered.

"Calm yourself, Zoë." Erwin turned to her with an assuring smile, "I won't be informing your father if you do not wish it."

Hanji blinked at him as she absorbed those words, and then she sagged, sitting down upon the bench with a soft gasp, "You recognized me." she murmured.

Erwin chuckled, sitting beside her and crossing one leg over the other, "Your nose gives you away, and so does your height...but most of all it's your demeanor. You really haven't changed all that much, Titania."

"Don't call me that. Please." she whispered sharply, "Not here. Here I am no one, I can't have that change. These people cannot know who I am." she pleaded.

"What else shall I call you but your name?" Erwin shrugged.

"It's Hanji. Hanji or nothing at all." she said.

"Is that so?" he sipped at the cup of wine he had been holding, "Tell me then, Hanji...why are you here?"

She turned her head and bit her lip, "I wasn't kidnapped, as if I could be so lucky." she scoffed, "I ran away." she said, her tone implying that she would offer no further explanation. "I would like it to stay that way."

"You ran away." Erwin nodded, "Because of your engagement to Lord Berner's son?"

"Lord Berner?!" she exclaimed, and then leaned close to whisper, "Cedric Berner's son?"

"You did not know your intended?" Erwin asked in surprise.

Hanji crossed her arms, "Of course not. I don't know if you knew my father as well as I, but he only ever told me the bare minimum. He simply informed me in the least insulting of ways that he was selling me like cattle for more wealth and power." she grit her teeth, begrudged.

"I see." Erwin sat back and considered her. "And would knowing who you were marrying have changed your decision?" he asked.

She scoffed, "No. I'd have left either way." she said.

"Hmm. And how did you get all the way out here, in Servia?"

"I ran into some people who live here." she said, looking down at her hands, "After I fell off my horse and broke my arm like an idiot." she chuckled mirthlessly.

"The Ackermans." Erwin said.

Hanji glanced at him, "How did you know?"

"They're the only people who would be so far out of town, my dear Zoë."

"Hanji!" she corrected in a hiss.

"Force of habit, child." he waved away her correction with a dismissive hand. She only glowered at him, and he sighed, "I suppose I'll leave you to the festival, I fear I'll insult you further if I stay." he stood and bowed. "Rest assured your father will learn nothing of your whereabouts unless you wish it." he said.

"Please don't tell anyone." Hanji pleaded before he turned away, though he paused to look at her, he did not answer, and her heart dropped down to her stomach.

* * *

Levi observed their interaction with interest. He'd never seen Hanji behave like she had, she seemed terrified. Perhaps it was meeting a lord that had her so pale, but he couldn't be certain. He watched as Lord Smith left her and made directly for him.

"Lovely girl." the older man said as he stepped beside him.

Levi glanced at him in curiosity, "What did you speak of?" he asked.

"Just introductions, Levi. Don't worry yourself." Erwin said.

Levi hummed, not quite believing the man, but it wasn't his place to question a lord. That's not to say he wouldn't question him later.

"You should offer her a dance, she seems lonely." Erwin observed, turning and making for the quieter side of the festival.

Levi shrugged, "Okay?" he said all too late, as the man was already gone. "Cryptic as always." he sighed as he made his way to Hanji. She jolted and gasped under his touch when he hugged her from behind, and he shushed her with a kiss to her shoulder, "Jittery tonight, aren't you?" he murmured.

"Levi." she said, voice recovering from the slight quiver he had heard.

"Want to dance?" he asked, spinning her in his grasp and giving her a small smile as he bumped noses with her. She blushed and nodded, accepting his kiss with a giggle.

"Yes. I'd like that." she said, taking his offered hand and following him onto the platform.

"Do you know this dance?" he asked, positioning his arms accordingly as she did with him.

"No." she admitted, biting her lip.

"Me neither." he said.

She barked a laugh, glancing over each shoulder to see if anyone had noticed her outburst. "I suppose we'll improvise, then."

"I suppose so." he leaned in close again and she pressed her forehead to his as they swayed. Not in tune with the music, it was too jovial for either of them in any case. A strange thought, her not being jovial. She seemed distressed, less happy than she was that morning, despite her smiles. If she were her usual self she would be forcing him to dance along with the music. Not that he would have minded. He would have preferred it to the solemn girl he had in his arms.

"Are you alright, Hanji?" he brought a hand up to stroke a curled strand of hair from her face.

She looked at him and nodded, though her movements were hesitant. "Yes."

"Remember what we said about lying?" he pressed her closer and stopped moving.

She nodded, "No bullshit." she said.

"That's right." he kissed her again, firmly and only just languid enough to have her searching for another when he pulled back. "So what's wrong?"

"Can I tell you when we get home?" she asked in a small voice, "I don't want to speak of it here."

He nodded, "As long as you tell me." he let her hug him, grunting when she squeezed him a little too tightly. "And don't crush me." he added, laughing as she loosened her hold and pulled back, flustered.

"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed quietly.

"You should be more careful. I'm delicate." he said, smirking when she paused and stared at him, and then she burst into raucous laughter that had him dragging her away from the dancing before she collapsed.

He could listen to that laughter for hours, it was so beautiful and wholesome. He loved it.

"Delicate?" she wheezed, accepting the wine he offered to her with another small fit of giggling.

"Calm down, you." he huffed, standing and looking around casually.

"Thanks for dancing with me." she sighed, leaning back against the table.

"We barely danced at all."

"It was still nice." she said.

Levi nodded and glanced around once more, his gaze landing on Lord Smith, who beckoned him over as soon as their eyes met. He tilted his head in consideration, and then looked down at Hanji, "Stay here, I'll be back." he said as he left.

"Alright." she said.

Levi approached Erwin with a respectful nod, "Did you need something, Lord-"

"You're a bloody idiot."

Levi furrowed his brow, startled at the way he had been addressed. "What?" he leaned closer to whisper.

"And here I always thought you were an intelligent person." Erwin said, " _Her_ of all people." he added quietly, as if speaking to himself.

"My Lord, I'm not certain I understand what you mean." Levi said in growing irritation.

"Did you not recognize her in the slightest?"

"Recognize...Hanji? Yes I thought I recognized her when we met. How could you possibly know her?" he asked suspiciously, though at this point he was starting to feel intrigued.

"You stopped by Cedric's estate on the way." Erwin said it as fact, it wasn't a question, but Levi answered it anyway.

"Yes I did."

"Did he tell you nothing of her?" Erwin muttered to himself, "Levi, take a look at her. Take a good look at that young woman and tell me what you see." Erwin pointed at Hanji, who stood with hands clasped before her and her face downcast as she seemed to contemplate something dire. Levi's features softened as he wondered what she was thinking of to look so sullen after he had made her smile and laugh like she did. He didn't realize he was openly admiring her until Erwin sighed. "She's different from the rest of them. Do you not see it?"

"Different?" Levi repeated, considering Hanji again.

"She's elegant, look at her stance, her poise. Look at the way she addresses others and how she holds her wine, even the way she's pinned her hair up." Erwin pointed out.

Levi grew defensive, "What of it, Smith? Why are you so interested in Hanji?"

Erwin scoffed, "Levi, for one, I am not interested in the girl. And secondly, that is not her name."

Levi frowned, his heart rate increasing as he recalled how he had told Farlan the same thing three months ago.

"That woman's name is Lady Zoë Titania, daughter of Lord Gregor Titania. Do you remember the first bounty I sent you on, four years ago?" Erwin explained.

Levi blinked, his gaze entirely fixed on the woman he had allowed himself to become so enthralled with. "Four years ago?" he breathed.

It was all coming back to him now...

* * *

 _He had been traveling for weeks, and upon arriving at the castle he nearly fell off of his horse. Regardless, the eighteen-year-old willed the wobble of his legs away as he entered the hall of Lord Titania. A rather feminine name, in his own, humble opinion. But he wasn't there to give his opinion._

 _He was received well, and he accepted his first bounty with grace and big words, as Lord Smith had taught him. He was offered a room to stay for the night, as per Smith's suggestion to Titania. And Levi was grateful. He was escorted to the room, and then left to his own devices. In the morning he was on his way to leave the castle, but he had (embarrassingly) become quite lost._

 _Upon turning a corner he ran into someone, a girl from the sound she made, and he righted her with steady hands against her slim shoulders. He looked at her then, observing her childish features and the lanky body of a girl who was slowly maturing into her height and slight curves. She couldn't have been older than fourteen, and she wasn't._

 _Her eyes were as dark brown as her hair, and yet highlighted with gold flecks and dark, thick eyelashes. They were truly pretty. Her nose was long and sloped, and yet fit well with her features in a way one wouldn't expect such a nose to. The girl tossed her long, luxurious, brown hair away from her shoulders and gave him a scowl._

 _"Watch where you're going, boy." she reprimanded, straightening her skirt._

 _"Boy?" he scoffed, allowing himself a rare smile. "I'm certainly older than you, girl." he said in challenge._

 _She flushed, be it with rage or embarrassment, he didn't care, she fisted her hands and glared at him. "I'll have you know that I am Lady Titania!"_

 _"And I'm supposed to care?" he crossed his arms in boredom._

 _"How dare you!" she gaped at him, shocked at having been sassed. She'd likely never experienced a harsh word in her life, privileged and rich as her family was._

 _"It's only the truth." he said, "Do you want me to lie and grovel at your feet in fear of a title like every other man you meet?" he asked._

 _She made to respond, but stopped herself, considering his words. He watched in amusement as she tried in vain to come up with a retort, and then she turned away from him in a huff._

 _"Before you leave," he said before she could walk away, and she paused to look at him over her shoulder. "I'm...well, quite lost. And in need of some directions."_

 _She tilted her head as she turned completely, hands on her slight hips, "It's not_ that _big of a castle."_

 _"That may be true, but it's only the second I've ever been in, my Lady." he said cheekily, and she turned her face with a blush. "I do need to collect my horse before I leave."_

 _She considered him for a moment, and then nodded, "The stables are this way." she strode past him in the opposite direction he had been moving in. He followed her closely, hands clasped behind his back as he watched her walk. She was an elegant girl, though she seemed a little rough around the edges. He considered the fact that he might grow to enjoy the company of someone like her, if he would be around long enough to._

 _That wasn't going to happen._

 _He thanked her when he reached the stables, and he held up her hand to kiss the back of it, a motion that seemed to surprise her. "You're a strange boy." she murmured, glancing up at his hair and taking in his features. He assumed she was memorizing his face. He didn't even bother to correct her for calling him a boy when he was a grown man._

 _"And you're a strange girl." he said as he turned and mounted his mare, patting the black horse on the neck as he directed her toward the road._

 _"Goodbye." she said with a wave._

 _He looked back once, watching the girl grow smaller as he rode off._

 _He saw her again. When he returned from his bounty to collect his reward. They simply greeted one another, and then he was on his way. He only thought of her once or twice in that same year. Afterward forgetting about her._

* * *

When he first met Hanji, he thought briefly back to a faint memory of that same nose and those same eyes, but he couldn't quite place it. Now, with the help of Erwin's words and the clarity they brought, everything fell into place.

He stared at Hanji...no...Zoë, her name was Zoë.

"You remember." Erwin said.

Levi nodded, gulping down the lump in his throat as he stared at her. "Why is she here?" he asked.

"Because you brought her here." Erwin supplied.

"No, that's not what I meant. Why did she leave?" Levi asked, gritting his teeth as he turned to Erwin.

"That's a question you'll have to ask her." the man replied.

Levi scoffed and rubbed his temples.

"You love her, don't you?" Erwin said.

Levi dropped his hand and sighed, hanging his head briefly before he looked up at the man beside him.

"It's easy to see. And I do believe she loves you too." Erwin added, placing his hand on Levi's shoulder, "I might not have told you if it weren't the case." he said as he turned away to mingle with the party goers.

Levi walked over to the nearest building and thumped his forehead against the wall. Why, when everything was going so perfectly, did something like this have to come up? Was this what she had been so worried about when she heard of the festival, or rather, of Lord Erwin? He had known she was anxious, he just couldn't decipher why.

And now she turned out to be a Lady. Her picture was in his drawer all this time, and yet he never connected the dots. "Damnit!" he hissed to himself, glancing over his shoulder to see her speaking with his sister. She was good at putting on a poker face, though now he saw straight through it. Just how much of her was a lie? He couldn't have expected this, and if he were honest with himself, he didn't know what to do.

* * *

He didn't speak to her for two days after the festival. He himself was as good at masking his emotions as she, better even, but he couldn't do it in this case. Couldn't bring himself to lie to her like she had to him... _them_. So he kept himself away from her, watching how she hugged herself and sulked when he ignored her or avoided her. He hated doing it to her, but he needed to think, to try to compose himself before he confronted her.

What was he going to say? He didn't even know that. He didn't know _how_ to confront her. But he needed to do so soon, it was physically painful to look at her and see those sad eyes looking back at him. At night he stared at that damned picture for hours before he slept, his old insomnia kicking in with the stress he was putting himself through.

Damn him. Damn Erwin for telling him. He would rather have never known. To have forgotten and simply lived his life in ignorant bliss, with Hanji...Zoë.

"Damnit!" he threw the parchment, covering his face with a sigh as he listened to it flutter to the ground. He couldn't let this go on any longer, he needed to see her, speak to her, get some answers to his questions. He stood and looked outside, realizing just how late it was, and he groaned, knowing she would be deep asleep by now.

He sat on his bed and waited. Waited for the sun to come up, and he found himself waking with sunbeams in his eyes. He had fallen asleep in the night.

Levi stood again, combing his fingers through his hair as he determined the time. He scooped up the worn, crumpled parchment and stuffed it in his pocket. He stepped out of his room and closed the door behind him, spotting Mikasa and Eren and Armin in the kitchen, but no one else.

"Where's Z-Hanji?" he asked, stumbling over his words and mentally cursing himself for it.

The trio looked up at him from the table, and Armin offered a shrug, "I haven't seen her today." he said.

"She's in her room." Mikasa said.

"Thank you." Levi said, pausing before he left, "What about Isabel and Farlan?"

"They're outside, taking care of the horses." Armin said with a chipper smile.

Levi nodded, heading up the stairs and coming to a stop in front of her closed door. He palmed his face and inhaled deeply, staring at the wood of the door for a time, perhaps a few minutes, before he finally opened it.

She was curled up on her bed, awake, and staring at the wall across the room. She seemed startled when he entered, and she sat up with hope evident in her features.

"Zoë." he addressed her.

"Yes?" she said eagerly, and then she blinked, a light gasp escaping her as she realized what he had said.

The confirmation was just as painful as hearing it from Erwin had been, and he sighed as he closed the door behind them, "We need to talk."

* * *

 **A.N.  
*cue London Bridge*  
"Oh shit...!  
Oh shit...!"**

 **Cliffhanger! Sorry y'all. I'm so sorry for the cliffhanger, but next chapter will be out very soon, I think it'll be a rather short chapter too, depends. I'm already working on it so don't worry.**

 **Erwin is cool. Don't be mad at him, he knows what he's doing.  
**

 **Also, to tease you guys...next chapter is gonna be another doozy**

 **(¬‿¬)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Okay so...I know I said this would come out sooner cause it's shorter, but I ended up editing this chapter 4 times cause I just couldn't get it right. And then once it was finally perfect I was stuck on what to continue scenes with, because I made a last minute plot change and I need to rearrange the rest of the developed story around it. It was worth it, granted, it's giving the story the added drama I need to go into this final stretch. But it's still gonna delay the rest of the plot a bit.**

 **I've got an estimated 50k words to go, give or take 10k. 2/3rds of the way done y'all!**

 **Anywho, enjoy the short chapter cause I decided to just post it without any extra scenes. Otherwise it would have taken another 2-3 weeks to get this up and...FUCK THAT! Lol. I think you guys will like this chapter. ;)  
**

* * *

She was frozen, unsure of what to say or do, waiting for him to say something. She had been so happy to see him, hopeful that her internal confusion would be put to rest, and then he said her name, her real name. And she was completely floored. She felt her blood run cold and her heart skipped a beat, though she was certain it had skipped three.

"We need to talk." he said, closing the door, and she gulped.

"What did you call me?" she breathed, desperate for any lingering hope that this wasn't what it appeared, that he hadn't found out on his own and that she wasn't exposed like this before she was ready.

He propped his hands on his hips and sighed, "That's your real name, isn't it?" he asked.

She gaped up at him and momentarily found herself at a loss for words, embarrassingly so. Only after a long, awkward pause (and her mouth hanging open like a fish) did she manage to speak, "How'd you find out?"

"A combination of sources." he began, pulling the paper from his pocket and handing it to her, "I got this from Lord Berner. Though it never actually occurred to me that the girl in the picture was you...until a few days ago, that is."

She gingerly received the parchment and observed the graphite replica of the painting her father had done when she was fifteen. It was somewhat faded and smelled of dust, ' _Of Levi.'_ she thought as she brushed a finger across the old, worn paper, crinkled from being stuffed in a pocket, "You've had this for _that_ long?" she said in a soft murmur.

"Like I said, I didn't know it was you. Not until Erwin told me."

She looked up at him then, eyes wide, "Smith _told you?"_ she asked, voice akin to a growl.

He raised a singular brow and gave a nod, "Yes, he did."

She stared up him for a another moment while she properly registered that fact, her body eventually sagging in a sigh as she considered her conversation with Erwin the two nights before. While she knew the man didn't make any promises, she still felt quite betrayed over this. She stood abruptly and scoffed to hide her sudden tears, "I told him not to tell anyone!" she exclaimed as she spun in place and faced the window, clenching the parchment in her hand so tight it audibly tore. She could feel curious eyes watching her back, and she heard the cautious step he took forward before he spoke. It made her tense unwillingly.

"So..." Levi began, obviously just as unsure as she was of what to say next, "You're a noblewoman." he said.

"Not anymore." she looked over her shoulder and met his eye briefly before she looked back toward the window.

"Why is that?" he asked.

She only readjusted her folded arms.

"Why didn't you say something?"

She scoffed, "Why do you think? I lied about who I was from the very beginning. How was I supposed to go about telling you who I _was_ when you had already gotten to know me for who I actually _wanted_ to be?" she asked, turning to face him and blinking back the lingering, persistent sting in her eyes.

"Isabel and Farlan would have understood." he said.

" _They_ would, maybe." she conceded, "And what about you? Would _you_ have understood my reasons?" she asked, wiping absentmindedly at the first tear to fall, her focus only on him and his reaction to her question.

He simply tilted his head. Though he did seem somewhat concerned to see her cry, his face was woefully devoid of any hints to what he was thinking, "I don't _know_ your reasons."

She shook her head, letting out a disappointed, yet resigned huff of air as she sat on the bed, "Right." she said, "Are you angry with me?"

He blinked at the question, and she watched as a range of emotions suddenly flickered across his face before he settled on somber. "I don't know." he said.

"You're either angry or you're not, Levi." she said, rubbing her palm into her forehead.

"Alright, then yes, I'm angry." he conceded.

Her lower lip quivered at that, and she nodded, "I'm the one who said we shouldn't lie to each other. You have every right to be mad at me. I'm the biggest damn hypocrite you've ever met." she scoffed at herself.

"All I really want to know is why you lied in the first place." he said.

She looked up at him, considering his question before she spoke, "Selfish reasons, mostly." she murmured, turning to watch her fingers pluck at a loose thread in the quilt she was sitting on.

He shifted in place, and she glanced up briefly to watch him cross his arms, "Enlighten me."

She resumed her nervous picking at the colored thread and inhaled deeply before she spoke, "I ran away. I didn't want anyone to know who I was because I was afraid that they would turn me in." she paused for a moment before she added hastily: "Though I did also consider that they might get hurt."

Levi nodded, "So basically, you wanted to protect us?" he clarified.

"Not so much you as myself. If you wanted to falsely justify my lying then you could say I had noble reasons." she said, "I figured that if you knew who I was then you might try to take me back. Or maybe that someone might find out and turn _you_ in to my father, some paranoid shit like that." she wiped at her eye again.

"It's not exactly paranoid, it's tactful actually." he said, eyebrows raised as if he were taken aback by her intelligence. "If I were running from someone I'd have done the same."

She scoffed and shook her head at his demeanor, "Don't act so surprised." she mumbled, "Anyway, Smith said that the way he heard it I was kidnapped. I figured my disappearance would be interpreted like that. And I guess I was right to be cautious." she continued, "Even if it included deceiving you all. I didn't enjoy it...I never did." she added in a soft murmur. "Everyone has become the family I never had, and you..." she trailed off, turning her head away. "Well, a small part of me is glad you know now."

After a deep breath and a sigh she turned back to him, "I _wasn't_ kidnapped, but that won't stop my father from thinking so, even if I said otherwise." she paused, "He'd have anyone who was with me killed, I imagine."

"Would he now?" Levi asked, smirking proudly as if to mock the very thought.

"Well, maybe not _you_." she said in amusement, chucking softly before she sobered, "Are you going to turn me in?"

"I don't know. Maybe I should." he said, and though it might have been said in jest, she took it as a truthful answer and gulped past the lump in her throat.

"I wouldn't resist if you did." she murmured.

He tilted his head in that adorable way he always did and furrowed his brow, "Why not?"

She chuckled mirthlessly, "Because I know you can kick my ass if you want to." she said.

He shrugged, and he let the silence overtake them for a time before he spoke again, "I have a question." he said.

"Yes?"

"Why did you run away?" he asked, and she frowned, "A woman of your position would want for nothing-"

"That's only what most would assume." she interrupted, tone betraying the underlying hate she felt for her previous life, "My entire life was spent in that damned castle. And even though it may have been my home, I always saw it as a cage. I felt trapped every second of every day. At least that's how it was after my mother died." she said, growing more impassioned as she spoke, "I may have had money, fine dresses, dances, etiquette, and all the jewelry I could ever dream of, but what use is any of that if you are lonely?"

She paused, glad to see him listening intently, and she shuffled in place as she continued her story, "It might not have been so bad if my father took the time to be one. I hit my breaking point when my father said he was marrying me off."

"You're engaged?" he asked, blinking incredulously at that bit of information.

She shook her head, "Not from _my_ point of view. Besides, I've never even met the man! And I wasn't about to allow myself to be traded like a damned goat for land and money."

"So if you went back, he'd force you to...marry someone else?" Levi asked, seeming quite desperate for confirmation.

 _'Someone else?'_

"Haven't you been listening?" she asked, exasperated, "Of course he would! That's all I'm worth to him."

"Zoë," he moved close, kneeling down and placing a hand over hers, "I'm not going to turn you in." he said, and she blinked in surprise.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Because, for one, that would make me just as bad as your father, right? Trading you for money." he gave her a slight smile, and her breath seized in her throat when he cupped her cheek with one hand. "That's not all you're worth to me." she smiled at that and leaned into his touch, grasping his hand with her own. "And secondly...do you really think I could let any other man have you?" he asked, voice a low timbre that had her shivering even as she stilled out of disbelief.

Her eyes went wide as she gaped at him. For the second time that day, she was at a complete loss for words. He gave her a small smile, then glanced down at her lips, the motion had her inhaling sharply. He looked up at her before he leaned in, and she closed her eyes in bliss when he kissed her. She whimpered, hiccuping on a sob against his lips.

He pulled back enough to look at her, noses still touching, and she flexed her fingers in the fabric of his shirt. He wiped at her wet cheeks, and she smiled again, cautiously optimistic. She hiccuped again before speaking, "Does that mean you love me?" she whispered, voice trembling and breathless with emotion. His eyes darkened with what she presumed to be desire, and she shrank back against the bed when he pressed forward, his motions swift and (if she was honest) rough, but tantalizingly so. It was surprising how quickly the atmosphere changed, how quickly they went from somber to passionate. Not that she had much time to dwell on that fact.

Her skin erupted in gooseflesh, and she shivered as he dragged his fingers and lips over her neck, so light it almost tickled. And then he was lifting her shirt, pulling it over her head...she lifted her back to accommodate him without hesitation. She breathed a soft moan when he gripped her hair and tilted her head back, laving his tongue over her neck as his hand slid into the hem of her pants and tugged them down over her hips.

"What are you _do-ing?_ " she asked, though her question was not in opposition of his actions. Her voiced cracked as she spoke and she jolted in surprise when he cupped her, rubbing gently until she was wet enough for two fingers to slip inside. She bit her lip to muffle a cry as he bent his finger inside her.

"Answering your question." he murmured, tongue grazing over her breast and brushing against an pert nipple as he did so. She gasped when he bit at the inside of her breast and then sucked sharply on her collarbone. Her hips jerked into motion and rolled into his vigorous touch at that point, hands fisted in either his hair or the bedding. His palm rubbed up tantalizingly against her as he pumped his fingers, and she moaned loudly as she grew near a climax, back arching up off the bed and fingers clenching so tight her knuckled turned white...at which point he gradually stopped, and she whined at the apparent loss of his touch.

"Levi..." she breathed, hands reaching for him in her confusion.

He sat up and settled himself on his knees, beginning to tug his shirt up. Though he paused briefly to look at her, the question of permission in his eyes, "You're okay with this?"

She knew immediately what he was asking, it was hard not to know, really. She sighed, both incredibly touched and completely irritated with how much he insisted on being a gentleman. It was sweet of him to ask, granted, but she wasn't hesitant this time, not in the slightest. "If I wasn't, you would know." she said, grasping at his shirt and pulling it up and over his head. She also pulled her knees to her chest and kicked the remnants of her trousers off best she could.

"Just making sure." he said, lowering his lips to the breast he hadn't attended yet. She hummed in delight, burying her fingers in his hair and hiking her legs up over his waist, locking her ankles together at the small of his back. She then used them to pull his pelvis in close, gyrating her hips slowly and languidly against his hardness. He grunted, pulling away from where he lavished attention to her chest.

He gave her a look that she couldn't quite decipher before he stood, tugging his pants from his body vigorously. She eyed _him_ with a soft smile as he stepped back onto the bed. She was tempted to reach down and feel the silky length of him beforehand, but she refrained, as he was already spreading her legs and pressing himself up against her. She giggled at the obscene noise he created as he tried initially to enter her and slipped. He gave her a glare before trying again, this time holding himself to keep steady.

Her laughing ceased immediately, brows furrowing together when he proved successful. And she grasped the sheets with a sharp gasp, biting down hard on her lip as he entered her, not having expected it to hurt _quite_ so much. She reached up and gripped his shoulders tightly when he moved, whimpering - this time in pain - and he stopped abruptly, blinking in what looked like disorientation.

"Sorry." he said, and she nodded in understanding.

"It's okay now...well not really...just wait a-ow!" he visibly jumped at her exclamation, having just moved when she said: "It's okay now". His wide-eyed expression was enough to make her giggle tersely, nearly out of breath. Her muscles were just as tense as that particular moment, so she willed herself to relax. A difficult task. But she managed it with no small amount of controlled, steady breathing. And after a moment she looked down and tugged his pelvis firmly and completely into hers, her head falling back as she huffed out a loud gush of air.

It was an odd feeling, she determined. Having him inside her. It was as if she had been empty for all this time and yet never realized it until he filled her. She liked it, to be honest. Everything about it just felt _right_. She relaxed considerably, muscles sagging in relief as the remaining pain began to ebb away. She glanced at his waiting features with a tentative smile.

He raised a brow, "Are you okay?"

She nodded, taking a deep breath before she responded, "Yeah, I'm fine. How about you?" she asked.

He closed his eyes and chuckled quietly, "I'm trying to keep it together...you have no idea how hard it is to keep still." he murmured, his body twitching in an obvious desire to move. She hummed in acknowledgment and trailed her hands down his back, cupping his ass and tugging him towards her again, in an attempt to try and prompt him into moving. A most effective method. His lips parted in a breathy moan, his hips jerking against hers reflexively, and then continuously.

"Ahh...shit." she gasped, gripping his skin tightly and trying to match his gradually-steadying rhythm. Her breath escaped her in a steady stream of soft gasps or moans. And Levi himself was anything but stoic, even a little more vocal than she, if it was possible. A fact that surprised her in the best of ways. Every loud moan and stuttering grunt he emitted over the next few minutes had her body tingling with warmth and pleasure.

His movement soon became erratic, signaling he was near his end. It was regrettably short-lived, this precious coitus between them. But it lasted long enough. And she could care less, simply being witness to the way he seized up and groaned, pressing his forehead to her shoulder as he released was surely worth it. His arms gave out as soon as he was spent, and she grunted softly as his full weight landed atop her, body quaking momentarily. He murmured a curse or two, and she snickered at him for it, stroking her hand up and down his sweaty back.

A silent contentment settled over them as they both took in the afterglow. She marveled at just how fulfilling it was to feel him release, strange warmth in her loins that just made her feel so complete and happy. And the noises he made, she sighed as she thought of them again. He was a noisy lover in general, when she used her hand to pleasure him, though not quite as feral in his mannerisms as he apparently was when it came to true love-making.

She was about to comment on it, but he spoke first, and she forgot her thoughts to smile in amusement at his words.

"I'm still mad at you." he breathed, turning his head to the nearest skin his lips could reach - that being her neck - and kissing her there.

"Are you?" she asked, her hand wandering up to his nape and scratching lightly, making him shiver.

"Only a little." he murmured against her fluttering pulse, still peppering her skin with lazy kisses.

"But you love me." she said, the corners of her eyes crinkling with the force of her broad smile.

He looked up at her and shakily propped himself up on his forearms, "I do." he said as he kissed her lips.

"And if I say I love you too, will you forgive me for lying?" she asked, fingers caressing his shoulder and trailing to his collarbone.

He scoffed, "I've already forgiven you, damned woman." he said.

"Then why are you still mad?" she chuckled.

"Because I'm going to stay mad at you until I'm not anymore. Doesn't mean I can't forgive you if I'm still mad." he said, rolling off of her with a grimace.

She squeezed her legs together and shared his grimace, wiggling her hips as the sting of their union returned. "Ow..." she grumbled, feeling woefully empty.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Sore." she sighed, reaching for her discarded shirt and pressing it to her nethers with a wince.

"Don't-you'll soil it...!" Levi sat up halfway, reaching for the fabric and then palming his face, "Nevermind, too late." he lay back down with a sigh.

She shrugged, "It was leaking out." she said in her defense, "And it felt funny."

He waved a hand to placate her, "I don't need to know that."

"Besides, it's _my_ shirt in any case, I'll just wash it." she supplied, shifting her body to face him and throwing a leg over his. She nestled her head against his arm and sighed, drawing a pattern on his skin with the tip of her finger.

"You're gross." he said, though he returned her endearing caresses, stroking his hand up and down her arm.

She hummed in acknowledgment, "I know."

"Farlan was right." he said, though he seemed to be talking to himself.

"Oh? About what?" she asked.

"Did I say that out loud?" he asked, palming his face when she nodded, "Well, he was right about a lot of things. Though I refer to how he always said the best part of fighting is making up afterwards." he said, "Or fucking rather."

"First off, we weren't actually _fighting_." she said with a scoff. "And secondly, _that_ just ruins the mood." she added.

"Maybe not, but we were still upset." he said in a shrug, ignoring her second comment.

She gave a shrug of her own, "I suppose that's true." she said as she snuggled against him.

He turned his head to look at her, studying her features in admiration before he spoke after a long silence. "Do you remember when we met?" he asked.

She nodded and a gave a small smile, "When you walked in on me." she chuckled.

"No." he shook his head, and she stared at him in confusion, "We met before. We were younger then." he corrected.

She furrowed her brow, "When?" she asked.

"You weren't even fifteen yet." he said, "Erwin sent me to your estate for my first real job as a sell-sword. I ran into you when I was trying to leave. Do you remember it now?" he watched as she propped herself up on her elbow against his chest, her lips parting in thought.

"Oh!" she suddenly exclaimed, glancing down at him and studying him carefully, "No wonder you seemed so familiar." she murmured, fingers tracing his nose and lips, a smile spreading across her face. She scoffed, "I was a little bitch sometimes." she said in recollection of the event.

"Mhmm. It was cute."

" _Cute?_ " she echoed, incredulous.

"Come now, you were barely a teenager, prancing around like a peacock as if you owned the place." he said, his mind's eye replaying the sassy little walk she had displayed years ago when she led him to the stables.

"Well I kind of _did_." she said, resting her head on his chest and listening to his strong heartbeat, still heavy from their lovemaking, "What else did you think of me?"

He hummed, and she looked up to see his eyes closed as though he were falling asleep, "That you were a brat."

"Pfft!" she scoffed, rolling off of him and onto her side, facing away from him. "That's mean."

"You just said it yourself!" he said, and she smiled when she felt him move, one arm snaking around her waist as he pulled her close. "And you were far more blunt." he said, dragging his thumb idly across the side of her breast.

"Yes, I suppose so." she said, back bowing up into his touch and a sigh escaping her lips. "Are you trying for another round?" she asked, looking over her shoulder at him. He was propped on his elbow and staring at her with eyebrows furrowed.

"No." he said, lightly kneading at her breast now, and she bit back a soft moan. "You didn't finish." he observed, kissing her shoulder as he pulled her hips completely flush against his own.

"I don't mind." she murmured, though that wasn't quite the truth. "I can excuse it...this one time." she added cheekily.

"I don't think _I_ can." he said, slipping one hand under her torso and moving his occupied hand down the length of her body and between her legs.

"You're really too sweet, Levi." she chuckled. He looked genuinely offended at her choice of words, and she laughed louder. "What? It's true."

"I'm not sweet." he scoffed.

"Mhmm..." she hummed mockingly, jerking as he thumbed her gently, "Keep telling yourself that, Shorty." she said in a whisper.

"Don't call me Shorty." he mumbled, kissing her shoulder and caressing her breast with his opposite hand.

She simply smiled, and gave a soft moan as he worked her towards a small, yet satisfying release that had her keening. She relaxed against him with a sigh, closing her eyes in contentment. "Thank you." she murmured.

"It's nothing, Zoë." he said, kissing her after she rolled in his arms to face him.

She pulled back and smiled, blushing deeply and burying her face in his neck.

"What?" he asked in a husky whisper.

"Nothing." she sighed, kissing his neck at the pulse, "You just used my name, is all."

She felt him nod, "Of course I did."

"I like it when you say it." she said moving up to kiss him again, and this time more languidly. He reciprocated with a soft groan, she tossed one leg over his waist with a teasing roll of her hips against him...and _then_ her stomach rumbled. She broke away with a horrified gasp and a fierce blush, hiding her face in embarrassment.

"We skipped breakfast." he said, chuckling.

"We did." she said from behind her hands.

"Oh come now. Why are you so embarrassed? Hmm?" he pulled her hands back and peered at her red face with a slight smile.

"Because it's embarrassing!" she exclaimed.

"You're hungry, it's not embarrassing." he said, kissing her nose and sitting up. "Get some clothes on. We'll eat breakfast. And then I'm going to lock us in my room for the rest of the day...and most of tomorrow." he paused, "Just to talk."

"Right, just talk." she gave him a sly look, "I'd like that." she giggled, sitting up with him and handing him his discarded shirt. "We should bring food though." she added as she plucked a clean shirt out of her dresser for herself. "So we can actually stay in your room _all day._ "

He scoffed, "I guess not _all day_. I don't like food in my room."

She wiped her bangs away from her face and threaded her fingers through her loose hair. "We might want to bathe later." she said as she gave up on fixing her post-coital hairstyle.

"Hey." he came up behind her and hugged her to his chest with hands around her waist, his brow furrowed in contemplation.

"Yeah?" she placed her hand over his, the other going up to thread through his hair.

"Don't mention anything to the others. At least not yet." he said.

"You mean about me?" she tilted her head, confused, "Why not?"

"Because I _do_ think we should talk about it more. And because I think your concerns might be justified." he said.

She spun in his grip so she could see his face, "You think it would be dangerous if they knew." she said, it was not a question.

He nodded, "If Erwin knew of you, others around here might know too. Though they wouldn't know what you look like. But if you tell them," he jerked his head toward the door to indicate his family, "Someone could mention it in passing. I'm not saying I don't trust them, but...I am worried." he admitted hesitantly.

She nodded slowly, "I know what you mean. So...we won't tell them?"

He frowned, "I don't know for sure, I _might_ tell Farlan...maybe Mikasa, but then she could tell Eren, and Farlan might tell Isabel...she gossips. I don't know if Eren talks to his father, and then Armin likes to talk with this girl in town lately. It just seems too risky."

Zoë bit her lip, "That honestly sounds like a good idea. I mean, it's not lying, per se. Right? We're just withholding information." she said, rationalizing mostly to placate her own consciousness.

"If you want to tell them, then you should. I'm just voicing concerns." Levi corrected, "But I also don't want you to feel like you _have_ to tell them."

"Well, I might feel better if I did...but I think I should wait and talk it out with you. Think on it for a few days before I make up my mind." she tilted his head up to kiss him, mindful of their slight height difference. He scowled when she pulled back smirking. "In any case, I'm still glad _you_ know." she murmured, and his scowl dropped in favor of that face he always made when she did something he found endearing. It made him look constipated, but she knew it was how he showed affection.

"Me too."

"And I'm still hungry."

He scoffed and pulled away from her, "Well come on then!" he said as he exited the room. And she scampered after him after pulling some pants on.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **They done did it!**

 **The did the horizontal tango!**

 **They danced the dance!**

 **She got that** **D** **!**

 **They fucked...moving on.**

 **Working hard on the rest of the story, consider this a small, 2-3 week intermission before I pick up chapter posting speed again. Gotta get the plot reorganized in my head before I continue. Also gotta work on Christmas and getting a job too. Stressful shit. Love you guys! See you soon with chapter 13!**

 **Oh and the next chapter is going to be FULL of cuddles and possibly more lemons too (¬‿¬)**


	13. Chapter 13

**OH. MY. GOD.  
I'm back! Hello again my beloved readers! I'm so damn excited to be posting this chapter. My little vacation took longer than expected, I was actually only on break from this story for a week or so, I started writing this chapter Christmas Day. Sure took me a while to get back into the groove. But I'm glad I took the time to relax and reread this chapter so many times before posting it, lol. I improved in my writing a little because of it.**

 **Anywho, this chapter is pure fluff and sin and filler, and time skip. I had to incorporate a time skip because there is literally nothing but boring winter between here and the rest of this story. The time skip spans about 3 months, maybe a bit more. I will try to put more Levihan sin in future chapters, but I don't know if they'll fit in.**

 **If they do, however, you can bet your ass I'll be adding the lemons! So don't worry too much. Have an overload of Levihan to make up for any lack of it in the future. On to the chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

She kept an eye on him. Since they left her room for breakfast Isabel had whisked her away, having her help with the chickens and moving the feed, preparing for stormy weather, along with other miscellaneous chores. Farlan had done the same to Levi, and they were practically side by side all day. She watched him when he was in sight, seeing how his brow furrowed and his eyes glossed over with distraction as he thought about this, about what he knew, and whether or not they would be telling the rest of his family.

She was watching him now, they were taking a break, and they were waiting for Farlan to fetch the snacks Armin had made for them, (Mikasa wasn't feeling well lately). He was sitting on one of the crossbeams of the barn, looking out the window with his chin propped on his hand, elbow propped on his knee. She could tell he was thinking, thinking long and hard. It was sexy, pretty damn sexy. But that was beside the point, she was a little worried because he hadn't spoken to her since they left her room.

Well, he hadn't spoken to anybody, really, especially since Isabel told him he apparently "-whinnied like a stallion." that morning. A comment that might have made her laugh if not for her desire to save Levi from further embarrassment.

Hanji hoisted herself up the ladder to the loft and walked across the crossbeam to sit by him and dangle her legs off the thick wood. "Hey." she nudged him lightly in greeting and smiled when he looked at her. He returned her smile, albeit halfheartedly, and nudged her back, returning his gaze to the snow-capped mountains on the opposite side of the lake. "Are you okay?"

He shrugged, "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're very quiet."

He chuckled at that, "Since when am I talkative?" he asked as he turned to face her.

She nodded in acquiesce, "Point taken. But still, what are you thinking?"

"You know what I'm thinking."

She sighed and hung her head, "What are you thinking _about_ what you're thinking?"

"Zoë-"

"Hanji." she corrected.

 _"Zoë."_ he growled, pulling her close with a hand around her waist, "I'm weighing the pros and cons of our options, and you are distracting me."

"I _like_ distracting you." she grinned, accepting his fierce, ensuing kiss with a soft hum of delight.

"You guys going to fuck up there or something?"

They broke apart and Levi rolled his eyes as they both looked down at the ground level.

"I'd like to see that." Isabel added, plucking some smoked meat from the tin Farlan was holding, "It'd be like watching a circus act."

Hanji stood with Levi's help, and despite embarrassment he pulled her close afterwards, "I like it when you distract me too, you should do it again later." he whispered, and she felt her cheeks grow hot with the knowledge that Isabel and Farlan might be watching, "After we're done here." he said as he turned away and tugged her along with him.

"Spend the day in your room, right?" she smiled when he turned around and tugged her down so he could reach those few inches up to her forehead, which he kissed softly, his movements restrained and stiff.

"I'm about to leave my sister and Farlan to the rest of today's chores." he mumbled, beginning the climb down the ladder.

"You guys coming or what?"

* * *

It wasn't hard for them to excuse themselves from present company, anyone present could see that the two of them were bursting with sexual tension that was begging to be relieved. Though Isabel taunted them relentlessly as they scurried off, and instead of snogging they found themselves sitting down while they waited for the awkward atmosphere the redhead had created to diminish.

Hanji looked at him out of the corner of her eye, following his gaze to the door.

"I don't like that they'll hear us." he grumbled.

"I don't think it matters. Even if we were quiet they'd still know what was going on." she rationalized, kicking her boots off over the edge of the bed.

Levi just sighed, and she kept his gaze when he looked at her while she pulled her shirt over her head, "What?"

She didn't answer, she merely smirked and turned over, getting to her knees and kissing him, all the while she tugged his shirt up. And after a brief separation of lips, tugged it over his head. She followed suit with his pants, though he resisted when she gently pushed him back by his sternum. "Lay down." she instructed, standing briefly to remove her own pants.

He raised a brow at her tone, though his erection gave him away, and she pushed against his chest once more as she straddled him, settling her knees on either side of his waist. She didn't make a move to do anything other than trace a pattern on his skin with a fingertip. "Do you still care if they hear us?" she asked, following her question with an all-too-deliberate roll of her hips against his abdomen.

He grunted, gripping her hips tightly as she lifted herself up and reached down to take him in, easily, as she was already warm, moist, and waiting for him. She braced her weight against his stomach, hands pressing down nearly to the point where it could hurt as she sheathed him, letting out a soft, shuddering breath to accompany his husky moan.

She shuffled, becoming acquainted with this new position of power, and she smiled when she met his eye again. "Is that a no?"

"Just go." he said, his fingers digging into the skin of her legs. "Please." he added, and she nodded, breath quickening as she began her dance. He tossed his head back, gasping and wanting to watch her, but as of yet unable. So he resolved to listen to her pant, thrusting his hips up every time hers came back down.

"Levi, look at me." she faltered, giggling breathlessly as she prodded at his chin and urged him to look down. He did, and she continued almost immediately, as if she got off on knowing he was watching her movements.

She probably did, and he was probably right when he pegged her as a pervert during the first bath he gave her. But nevertheless, it was the same for him, and he watched with fascination and arousal as she rode him, taking in everything from the way her skin sheened with sweat to how her thighs flexed every time she lifted herself up. She soon centered her weight on one hand, burying her other between them and rubbing frantically where they had joined.

He felt her climax, watched her close her eyes and gasp, lips parted and her back bowing out while she thrummed around him. And as soon as her peak had passed, she was back to moving, determined to make him finish too. It didn't take much effort on either of their parts, as he was close as it was, and she gingerly moved to lay atop him when he spilled. Gasping for air and smiling as if she were the happiest person in the world.

He found after a moment or two that he didn't necessarily like staying still afterwards, so he rolled to top her, and she hugged him to her chest as he pulled out and made himself comfortable. "And you said we were staying here all day, right?" she asked.

He scoffed and rested his chin on her belly after shuffling down to lay his body between her legs. "Yes I did."

"Good." she sighed dreamily and swiped his hair to the side, fingers brushing against that spot on the back of his neck that made him shiver no matter how many times she had done it. She giggled, and he shook his head as he kissed the slight swell on the underside of her breast.

"But I didn't just want to spend time in here for sex, you know."

"No, I know." she nodded, "Sex is better, and I _would_ prefer that, but I know we need to talk."

"Are you sated for now?"

"For now...and you?"

"For now." he repeated, burrowing his hands beneath her back as he lifted his head to look at her. "I don't think this should be one person's decision, we need to decide together."

"Me too." she agreed.

"In my opinion," he began, "We shouldn't tell them. It's a big risk that I don't think is worth taking."

She blinked, having been certain he would want the opposite, "But...I don't know if I can live with myself for lying to them." she said, furrowing her brow, "Have you already forgotten the reason you were upset today?"

" _Am_ upset. But that's beside the point, we are withholding information, not lying, there's a big difference."

"There's _no_ difference!" she exclaimed.

"Yes, there is." he said, voice quiet and a hand raised to calm her.

"Feels the same to me no matter how you try to sugarcoat it." she turned her head to the side with a dramatic sigh, and he frowned.

"Hey."

She bit her lip, but she didn't look at him.

"Zoë...hey." he pulled himself up to see her, and she closed her eyes, "I'm not trying to spare either of _us_ pain, I'm thinking of my family, their safety. And besides, we might not even need to worry about this, Erwin said he wouldn't tell anyone." he said.

"He told _you._ " she muttered.

"Yes, he did, but that's only because he knew I wouldn't tell anyone either. He trusts me is all." he said, and she nodded hesitantly, though her nose was turning red and so was the skin of her eyes. "You can cry, don't hide it." he murmured, and she opened teary eyes to look at him. "I know you get emotional."

"The worst part is that I agree with you." she said, and she let him wipe a tear away.

"Better to agree than disagree." he said.

"But I don't _want_ to keep any secrets, it's the only flaw of my new life." she took a shuddering breath.

"Life can't be perfect, not even for people who start over." he shrugged, "It's a joint decision, but I want you to have the final say, Zoë. So what do you want to do?"

She looked at him for a moment, calculating, and possibly contemplating defying him. Her fingers traced his jaw absentmindedly, and she eventually sighed and shook her head, "You know, I don't think I'll ever win any arguments we have in the future." she scoffed, "You're too convincing."

"Arguments are for married couples."

"Who says we won't be?" she asked with a chuckle, though her humor fell flat, and his eyes widened considerably at the notion. It was generally not the place of a woman to suggest that to a man, she remembered, though that may not be the reason he was surprised. She cleared her throat, pressing her lips together in a flat line as she endured the silence she had incurred.

"We won't tell them."

He blinked, seeming a bit caught off guard by her sudden decision, but he nodded. "Okay, we won't then." he said, soothing her with a kiss, long, languid, and comforting.

"Can we go again?" she asked as he pulled back, and he shook his head as he chuckled.

"I think I made a mistake." he said jokingly as he sat up and back onto his knees, "I'm going to be stuck in this room forever with your appetite."

"Is that a yes?" she pulled her knees up to her chest, and he bit his lip as he looked down at her.

"Can we take a bath first?"

"Nope. We're staying in this room till the sun rises tomorrow." she said, "We can take a bath if you want." she added on in a soft murmur as she watched him stare at her. He didn't speak for a moment, eyes blank as if he had spaced out, and she tilted her head curiously, "Did you ever get a good look at it before?"

"What?" he looked up at her with an incredulous expression, "Yeah-I mean...I'm just thinking."

"Thinking what?" she asked.

He wasn't really staring at- well, okay he was staring at her womanhood, was even tempted to try out what Farlan had told him to do, but he needed her clean first. Just because Farlan said it wasn't dirty to do it didn't mean Levi shared his beliefs. He was only thinking that she had had her bleed only a week or so before and that his seed was likely to quicken if they continued on like they were doing. For all he knew it already had, and he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that.

"Nothing really." he said, "You're just...distracting." he would talk to her on that subject later, "And dirty, I'm getting a bath ready."

"We can't stay in here all day if we keep leaving for baths every time!" she exclaimed, "And you know we're just going to fuck in the tub, right?"

"Shut up, get some clothes on." he smirked, dodging a pillow thrown at his head.

"But we are!"

And they did. Afterward cleaning themselves and hiding out in his room again, lazing together and even napping at one point. A very warm, comfortable nap that Hanji regretted waking from.

She stirred and groaned, rolling over to bury her face in Levi's chest and throwing a leg over his waist to tug him closer. He jolted and she lifted her head to murmur an apology for waking him. "Sorry."

He shook his head and shrugged, "I didn't expect to fall asleep."

She snuggled against him, and he hugged her to his chest while he rolled onto his back. She giggled as she settled herself atop him, eye closed contently. "You know..." she mumbled.

"What?"

"I've told you about my past...what about yours? Your childhood?"

He propped his head up on his hand and raised a brow at her, "What is there to tell? Didn't Isabel already disclose that anyway?"

"Not all of it." Hanji said, tilting her head in indication for him to elaborate.

He sighed, letting his head drop and reaching a hand into her hair to play with it while he spoke, "There really isn't much to tell."

"Tell me anyway." she said with a smile.

He pursed his lips and stared at the ceiling, "I don't know where to start."

"How far back do you remember? Start from there." Hanji suggested.

He hummed, "Well, I was only two when Isabel was born, so I don't remember that."

"You grew up together." she said with a smile of endearment.

"So?"

"It just sounds nice, I always wanted siblings." she shrugged.

"Anyway," Levi continued with a roll of his eyes, "Earliest I remember is before my sixth birthday. My father took me hunting for the first time. I didn't hit anything but he still let me carry the pheasant home." he said with a chuckle. "Mother had just given birth to Mikasa a few months before that."

"Was she cute?"

He raised a brow at her, "A little."

"I wish I could have seen her." Hanji said, motioning for him to continue.

"Other than that, we had very simple lives. Father sold lumber for a living, and he made Isabel her first bow when she was five. I hardly remember mother doing anything besides take care of Mikasa and cook." he paused and thought for a moment, "Father also sang a lot. He was really bad at it, but he did it anyway."

"My mother used to sing." Hanji said.

Levi smiled briefly, "He also told Isabel a lot of stories, she liked hearing them and they put her to sleep. I learned to ride that year." his features turned somber, "When Mikasa turned a year old I took to carrying her with me in her sling while I did my chores. It took a load off of mother, and she was free to embroider like she used to. I'm glad I did, if I hadn't Mikasa would have died with our parents."

"What happened?" she asked in a murmur, "I mean...you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"No, it's fine." Levi sighed, "Father had been talking about them a lot, I never did catch the name of the group, but they had been rampant for months in that area. Eventually they came to our house, in broad daylight. I went with my instincts and grabbed Isabel, I had Mikasa with me already, I also grabbed my horse, and then we ran into the woods. It's what father said to do, and we didn't go back."

"So you didn't see them die?"

"I did." Levi said, "Before I left I saw it."

Hanji blinked and frowned, "Wow." she said, "I honestly hadn't expected you to have had such a small childhood."

"Like I said, there wasn't much to tell. We didn't have food so we had to stop at the first village we came to, we lived on the streets for nearly three months before I learned of the orphanage in the next province over. And that's where we went." Levi said, "I assume you know the rest?"

"Yeah." Hanji nodded.

"I never said it was a happy story." he said, observing her frown and the way her eyes shimmered.

"You could have warned me." she said with a mirthless smile, kissing his palm.

"You pressed me for the story, you have no one to blame but yourself." he said, rolling onto his side again and letting her fall off of his chest with a comical "Oof!"

She grumbled and snuggled back against him, "Have you ever wanted to find out who did it?"

"I already did, with Erwin's help." he said, "Can we stop talking about it now?"

"Sorry." she said, feeling a little awkward and guilty for bringing the subject up in the first place. She stayed silent and bit her lip, feeling the lingering tension in Levi's abdomen muscles with hesitant fingers.

He took a deep breath and kissed the crown of her head, "Don't be sorry." he said in a murmur, and she nodded.

"Okay."

"You said your mother used to sing?" he prompted.

"Yes, she did." she looked up at him curiously only to find him gazing right back with a soft expression upon his features, "Why?"

"Tell me more about her." Levi said, his tone implied that he was not demanding, and she was thankful for it.

Hanji hummed and rolled onto her back, noting that his toes were touching her ankles due to his height difference, and that made her lips quirk at the corner. She would never really get over that. "Um..." she sighed, thinking back on memories of her mother, "She was really pretty, not like me, I got my nose from my father." she touched said appendage, referring to the lengthy, sloped, yet feminine shape.

"Who ever said you aren't pretty?" Levi suddenly propped himself on his elbow and gave her a stern, icy glare that only served to make her giggle.

"I did, it's just a fact." Hanji said, giving the hand her used to trace her nose a withering look.

"I like your nose."

She grinned, "Thank you. Now don't interrupt." she kissed his finger once it reached her lips, "I got my hair from her too. Hers was brighter, more red, but it was just as thick as mine, unlike my father. His hair started to recede a little while before I left." she said that with a frown, "She liked riding, and she often had me use trousers instead of dresses and sidesaddles, like she did. It was our little secret. Since riding astride isn't ladylike."

Levi huffed, "I'll never understand nobility. Sidesaddle isn't practical."

"Never was meant to be, it's all for show when it comes to the customs of the noble." Hanji explained, "Silly customs that only serve to make us feel like we are superior to commoners. In reality the only difference between us and common folk is the gold in our pockets."

"That and unadulterated access to knowledge." Levi added.

Hanji pursed her lips, "That too. Though I read somewhere that Rome and Britain are slowly implementing these places called...mmm..." she trailed off, "It's an English word so I have trouble recalling the German word for it. But it's basically a large collection of books, free to the public.

"Library?" he provided.

"Yes! That's it. The scholars hate the idea in most cases." she chuckled.

"Naturally," Levi nodded, the hand he had left resting on her collarbone began to move again, "They'll lose money as a result."

"I suppose." Hanji shrugged, hyper-aware of his fingers trailing down her chest and stomach, "We went off topic." she breathed.

He hummed in acknowledgment, "Indeed we did. Why don't you continue." he said, and she raised a brow when he smirked at her.

"If you are planning anything inappropriate I would prefer not to speak of my mother during." she crossed her arms and gave him a stern glare.

Levi scoffed, though he nodded in acquiesce, "Best not talk about her at the moment, then." he said.

Hanji laughed, observing as he hoisted himself up on all fours and moved to sit between her legs. She parted said limbs to accommodate him, and glanced down curiously, "What impropriety are you planning?" she asked.

"Hush and let me demonstrate, woman." he said, leaning to kiss her sternum and trail his lips down her stomach, which tickled quite badly. She curled up into herself and laughed, nearly smacking her knee into his jaw, and he placed his hands on her knees to keep his face safe from injury. He gave her an irritated glance, while she shrugged as an excuse of her actions. "Try not to kick me." he said, kissing her knee and trailing his fingers down the inside of her thigh on the opposite leg.

"I won't make any promises." she said, "What are you trying to do anyway?"

He only responded by rolling his shoulders once or twice before laying on his stomach between her legs, hesitating only briefly before he began. She jolted and gasped, eyes wide and blinking in surprise when he laved at her, not having expected him to do anything remotely like that. She could barely catch her breath even when she tried, and her hands fisted in the sheets while he worked her, slowly and languidly, as if he enjoyed it. She wondered if he truly was. She knew _she_ was surely enjoying. God, she was!

She gave a gasping moan, and she felt him smirk against her upon hearing it. The movement disrupted his ministrations, and she took advantage of the break to shuffle into a more comfortable position, her back bowing up when he continued, adding a finger or two to the mix. She stiffened further, struggling to writhe in pleasure under his firm, stilling hand.

He pulled away, peering over her body to see her face, and she groaned at the loss of his warm tongue, "Try not to wiggle so much." he said, and she huffed a laugh, her hips still rolling to meet his fingers as they pumped her.

"I'll do my best, just don't stop again." she breathed, her head lolling back when he returned to his diligent work. Work of which lasted another minute or so before she cried out, body quaking and bowing up as she climaxed. "Oh wow...shit." she gasped, muscles going limp.

He crawled up to eye level and wiped at his face, naturally, as he still didn't believe Farlan when he said it wasn't dirty.

"Where did you come up with that idea?" Hanji asked, cheeks aglow with a contented blush.

"Farlan told me to try it." Levi shrugged, leaning down to kiss her nose.

"Thank him for me then." Hanji chuckled, shaking her head, "Wow."

He seemed to blush, embarrassed for some reason.

"Can you do it again sometime?" she asked with a smirk.

* * *

Winter was kind of...well, boring. Especially if one lived in a cabin in the mountains, isolated from society. It wasn't necessarily boring from a lack of things to do, but from the monotony of it all. Every day seemed to start with the same dreary, grey horizon and a fresh layer of snow. She and Levi practiced in the barn because the snow was too deep to maneuver in. She ran out of books to read around the end of the year, and now coming into late January she was almost crazed from isolation.

She kept herself from going insane by learning every recipe Mikasa knew, crocheting for hours daily, and finishing each day by spending an hour or so with Levi before she fell asleep. They weren't always physical, sometimes they were too tired to do anything, and other times they simply talked, she relayed every detail of her childhood over the course of those months. She could easily say they both knew nearly everything about one another by now. Well, almost everything, there was always more to tell after all.

When it came to her companions, they seemed used to the winter, and they all had a much brighter attitude than she, minus Levi. Eren came and went rapidly during the first month, but he was eventually forced to stay due to the snow (much to Mikasa's delight, and Hanji's for that matter, he was a very fun person to be around). Isabel and Farlan were the same old, same old, except Isabel was always buzzing with excitement for some weird reason. Hanji suspected it was because of her relationship with Levi, it also could have been because of Mikasa's swelling stomach, of which was more than twice it's original size _already_.

Her days got more interesting when she realized Armin was always drawing, and she offered some advice. She enjoyed teaching him to draw, it was a wholesome use of her time. They'd spend a few hours every day on their stomachs, sketching on paper and debating over what they were drawing. It reminded her of her own mother, who used to do the same with her.

Hanji also moved into Levi's room, he was a bit put off by it at first, as he had never had to share a space before. But she kept her stuff clean, her clothes folded, and she made the bed every morning to keep him satisfied. Armin moved into her old room, leaving Eren and Mikasa to solely occupy his previously shared room. An arrangement that benefited everyone greatly.

Today was the first of February, and Hanji was already off to a lazy start, mainly due to the blizzard raging outside. It was incredibly cold, and she had no intentions of getting out of bed that morning. She was quite content to curl up against Levi under the two thick blankets and drift in and out of sleep until late afternoon. He never let her sleep that late, though, so she expected it when he sat up and let all the cold air into the warm cocoon she had been building around them all morning.

"Come on,Zoë."

He always called her that when they were alone, she usually loved it, but right now she was terribly sleepy and terribly grumpy. She groaned loudly in protest when he nudged her shoulder, and she rolled over to face the wall when he pulled the blankets completely away. "No." she mumbled, "It's too cold."

Levi simply rolled her over, she was unable to resist him, as he was still physically stronger than her. He pulled her by the feet until her legs were hanging off the bed, and then he pulled her arms until she was sitting up. She stared sleepily at him while he rummaged through her drawer in his dresser, pulling out a pair of pants and tossing them directly at her face. She sighed in defeat and stood, pulling her pants on and fixing him with a deadly glare the entire time.

"Why do we have to get up?" she asked, "There's nothing to do in a blizzard."

"Because I am hungry." Levi said, pulling a shirt on.

"It's cold." Hanji grumbled, following him out of the room and hugging herself.

"Then go sit by the fireplace." he pointed to the coals, still glowing from the fire the night before.

She grumbled again, stopping by the door to grab a couple chopped logs before she went and sat cross-legged by the fire and stuck them in, stoking it with the steel poker. She listened to him rummage around in the kitchen for about fifteen minutes, heard him light the stove and heard a pot or two clang before he was stirring for a time. All the while she was staring at the fire and waiting for him to finish some sort of breakfast before she fell asleep again.

She was soon presented with a bowl of hot porridge, a dish she had grown tired of far too long ago to complain anymore, and she smiled gratefully while he pushed her to the side to make room for himself by the fireplace. "Thanks." she said, spooning the oats into her mouth and sighing as her hunger was abated. He nodded and sighed, shuffling closer to the fire.

They ate in silence, and she finished before he did, placing her bowl to the side and stoking the fire again, of which was now blazing strongly again.

"What time is it?" she asked, glancing outside and frowning at being met with only white, the faint shape of snowflakes flying in the wind just barely visible.

"Don't know, can't tell without the sun." he said in a shrug, finishing his breakfast and leaning back on his hands.

Hanji nodded, rolling onto her back and closing her eyes, "Why did we get up again?" she mumbled.

"Because." he said, and she grinned when he shoved her lightly, "Stop complaining, you sleep more than I ever do."

She nodded, that was true. He had told her he suffered from insomnia, especially in his teen years. He still had issue falling asleep at night, and she had eventually prompted him into telling her that he always fell asleep hours after her, unless he was exhausted. That was why she avoided waking him in the night anymore, she wanted him to get all the rest he could. Sometimes she did it anyway, though, but only in extreme cases, such as if she was exceptionally hot and bothered after a dream or something of the like. He didn't seem to mind in _that_ particular scenario, as long as she topped, that is.

"What are we going to do today?" she asked, already feeling like today was shaping out to be incredibly bleak and lazy.

"Likely nothing, there's really little we can do on a day like this." Levi said.

"How long will the blizzard last?" she asked.

"How should I know?" he scoffed, "Could be a day, maybe a week, depends."

"I'll go mad if it lasts a week." she groaned, covering her face with an arm.

"No you won't. I'll keep you busy." he said matter-of-factually, and she grinned at the implication.

"Oh? How so?" she asked, pulling her arm away and pinning him with a lecherous look.

He raised a brow and rolled his eyes, looking away and taking up the poker to stoke the flames again, "You know how so, don't be a brat."

"Will you keep me busy right now?" she prodded, hugging onto his arm and peeking up at him with a smile.

"No." he said.

"Why not?" she whined, hugging him tighter and nearly making him drop the poker.

"Because."

"Because why?" she smiled, rolling in place to plop her head in the middle of his lap.

"Because reasons." he said, the corner of his mouth upturned into a slight smile at her antics.

"That's not good enough." she shook her head dramatically.

His fingers suddenly wiggled against her rib cage and she squealed, wriggling to get away from him, but he pulled her right back and dug into her armpit with the opposite hand. She yelped and cackled with desperate laughter, soon enough wheezing and out of breath. He had a habit of tickling her if she got too playful, and she hated it...though she kind of liked it just the same.

"Okay STOP! Stop!" she cried, "I can't breathe!" she gasped when he finally ceased, and she closed her eyes in relief, going limp and panting. "Why did I get a tickler?" she asked, to nobody in particular.

A door opened upstairs, and they both got to their feet, Levi ushering her away and into the hall, "Get back in the room before we're stuck out there." he said, and she giggled, closing the door behind him and locking it before she leaped into bed, bouncing lightly against the mattress before she settled and closed her eyes with a sigh.

"I really want to go back to bed." she murmured.

"You aren't going to sleep any time soon." Levi scoffed, tugging his shirt over his head again.

Hanji peeked at him with one eye, still appreciative of his figure despite being privy to seeing it every day for months now. "Oh really? What did you have in mind?"

"Nothing risque." he said with a shrug, "We have to fold the clothes first."

"No we don't!" Hanji cackled, "What clothes?" she looked around pointedly, and he held up the shirt in his hands, only serving to make her cackled harder. "You had me worried for a minute." she stood and pulled her shirt off giddily, folding it with expert form developed over over half a year of living with this man.

"Good job." he said, moving her clothing to the dresser and then proceeding to push her onto the bed. She fell down with a giggle and accepted his ensuing kiss with a thoroughly contented hum.  
 _  
'I don't think I've ever been this happy.'_ she thought to herself while her lover kissed his way down her neck.

And she was right, but now that she was truly the epitome of happiness, there was really only one direction to go.

* * *

 **A.N.  
Well gee...that ended on a kinda foreboding note didn't it? I'm totally continuing this scene with next chapter lol, too frickin sexy in my head to skip out on.**

 **Until next time...*ominous noises as she slinks back into the Levihan** **trash can***


	14. Chapter 14

**So I lied. I was gonna continue straight on from last chapter but it just wouldn't happen.**

 **Man! I am so sorry this took so long. I had this chapter completely thought out, I'd literally sit there and think through the whole thing every time I went to bed or took a shower, but the words just hate me and decided to come to me incredibly slowly, lol. So yeah, sorry for that.**

 **BUT! You guys get 11k+ words as a reward for waiting so patiently! YAY!**

 **Thanks to anonymouslyabitch for suggesting the glasses be added in.**

 **Ahh, might be the last chapter with fluff in it, as we're getting back to the plot now. This is all tying together so well and so much better than what I had planned out in my head and I'm super excited for us to finally reach the climax of this story.**

 **ALSO be warned, thar be lemons ahead, extremely JUICY lemons. And fluff, god I love Levihan fluff and shenanigans.**

* * *

Hanji had never seen a storm last so long. She was getting tired of seeing pure white every time she looked out the window for nearly a week now. If she thought she was bored before she was terribly mistaken. Any chores or pastimes were becoming mundane at this point. She was certain she had read every book in Armin's collection twice, and Isabel was reading well enough that she didn't need guidance anymore.

Today she picked up a book she had read a hundred times before, truly, as it was one of her favorites as a child. She figured to herself if she only had books as her pastime, she might as well read something nostalgic. It was a little fairy tale her mother used to read to her. Nothing particularly fantastical, a typical princess and her prince story, but she loved it anyway. The book always managed to capture and keep her attention no matter how many times she read it.

At least it usually did. She was trying to focus on the letters, she really was. And she did so resolutely for a time before she dropped the book to her lap and sighed.

"What is it, Armin?" she turned to the blonde, who had been staring at her on and off for the better half of an hour.

The boy jumped, as if he didn't suspect she had taken notice of his blatant stare, "Nothing...it's just, have you always read like that?" he asked, fiddling with his hands.

Hanji furrowed her brow and tilted her head, considering how she held the book, even glancing at the pages before her, "Like...what? What _other_ way is there to read?" she asked in confusion.

Armin took a step closer, "Start reading." he said, gesturing for her to continue, and she did so with a skeptical brow raised.

He watched her for a moment, and she waited for him to speak...though not for very long. "Well?"

"I noticed it a month or so back." Armin took the book from her, "You have always squinted at the pages, but over time you have gradually held the book closer to your eyes, still squinting. Is your eyesight going bad?"

Hanji blinked, "What? No. No, my eyesight has always been quite good. Watch." she grabbed the book back and held it down by her knees, straightening her shoulders and showing him wide eyes to prove her point, she glanced at the pages and stared for a moment. She felt her confident smile slip away almost immediately. The letters were unintelligible. She felt her cheeks grow hot as she slowly brought the book closer, still keeping her eyes wide, and the letters grew clearer, yet still they remained somewhat fuzzy, as if she were looking at them from afar. Eventually the book was half a dozen inches from her face, and the letters were at their clearest. She squinted to test her eyes, and the clarity was only slightly improved.

"Well?" Armin asked, his voice laced with concern. She would have felt better if he was smug over his observation being proved correct.

"I never noticed." Hanji rubbed her eyes cautiously.

"It's nothing that can't be fixed, Eren's told me about nearsighted people. His dad is nearsighted after all."

"I know. I guess I need spectacles then." she said self-consciously.

Armin nodded, "We can probably go to town to procure some within the month, I'd wager. You'd have to ask Farlan and Isabel." he said as he sat down, "I figured I should point it out, you could make it worse if you kept on without noticing."

Hanji tilted her head, somewhat incredulous, "I'm not sure that's true."

Armin shrugged, "I heard that from the matron at the orphanage, I'm not sure it's true either, but she told any child with spectacles the same thing."

"Probably an old wives tale." Hanji returned to her book, more conscious of her demeanor and (if she was honest) a bit put off from wanting to read anymore until she obtained some glasses.

She told Levi about it later the same day, as he was dozing lightly on her lap while she crocheted...

"Mhmm." he hummed, and she scowled.

"That's all you have to say? _Mhmm?_ " she parroted back, somewhat upset by his lack of reaction.

"So you need glasses. Yeah, yeah...it's nothing to get all worked up about." he said, waving a hand dismissively, and she crossed her arms, purposefully dropping her crochet and yarn atop his face.

"You aren't the one who needs glasses." she humphed, turning her head away as he sputtered over the yarn in his mouth and sat up to shoot her a scolding glare.

"Why _are_ you so worked up about it?" he asked, and she fixed him with a glare of her own.

"I'm nervous. I'm allowed to be nervous, aren't I?"

He gave her a little smile, and she looked away, determined not to be charmed by him. "Nervous? Why are you nervous about getting spectacles?" he asked, poking her.

"I just am. For a great variety of reasons." she mumbled, embarrassed.

"Hmm." he hummed, and she scowled at him again, though her irritation was promptly ignored, and she squealed in surprise as he suddenly pulled her into his lap, knees on either side of his hips. "Well don't be." he said, and she flushed at the proximity of his lips to her own.

"It's not that simple." she rolled her eyes.

"It is. There really isn't anything to worry about. Don't be paranoid. It's two pieces of glass and a frame, nothing more, nothing less." he said, and she shrugged. "You always make things more complicated than they need to be, don't you?" he pressed his lips against her nose, and she scrunched said appendage, giggling softly.

"Not always." she murmured, fingering the fabric of his shirt and averting her eyes while he studied her endearingly.

"Most of the time." he said, lifting her chin.

She smiled, nodding, "Most of the time."

He kissed her.

* * *

It was three days later when the clouds finally lifted, and the sun shone brightly off of the thick layers of snow outside. Not that Hanji was able to appreciate it, she was too busy sleeping away a cold to care. Levi was courteous enough not to ban her from his room, but he was a little perturbed that she had the gall to even _get_ sick.

"It's not _my_ fault I got sick." Hanji said, rolling onto her back so she could look at him.

He scowled, muttering to himself while he dusted the room for the third time that day. She heard a few words pertaining to burning the bedsheets and she chuckled, regretting it immediately as it spurred on a coughing fit. He turned to look at her in irritation and she covered her mouth with a strained smile, "I suppose that means no kissing?" she asked.

"Not until you're better."

"Aww..." she groaned dramatically, rolling onto her side again and huffing, "What if I'm not better for, say, a _week?"_

"Then you'll wait a week." Levi replied. Her brows furrowed in irritation when she heard the mirth in his voice, he was amused by her entirely legitimate complaining. She looked over her shoulder to glare at him, frown deepening over the smug smile he was flashing her.

"Just one?" she asked, pursing her lower lip.

"Nope." he turned around and continued with his meticulous dusting job, and she flopped onto her stomach, whining absolutely pathetically.

"I'll go mad by lack of physical contact and you'll be the one to blame." she said, words partially muffled by the pillow.

"You went over eighteen years without touching me, I think you can handle a few days."

"But that was before I knew what kisses were like!" she exclaimed, rolling onto her back again and giving him pleading eyes, "Especially your kisses." she added with a soft blush.

"Well, get better then." he didn't even look at her, resolving to clean the doorknob, again.

She growled in annoyance and tossed a pillow at him, of which he dodged as if it were a plague in and of itself.

* * *

Hanji was sitting wrapped in a thick quilt on the couch, close to the fire. She was waiting for Levi to finish washing the bed so she could sleep on it again. Her sickness was abiding after an incredibly long four day wait...okay, not _incredibly_ long, but she was sure as hell missing Levi's kisses...among other things. The sky was still clear, thankfully. They would be heading into town within the month to replenish supplies and to get her a pair of glasses. She was actually looking forward to it now, as since realizing her eyesight was bad, she also realized just _how_ bad it was.

Well, it wasn't terrible, per se. Anything in the distance was fairly difficult to see, and she noticed that if she sat on one end of the house, the other end would appear a blur of color in her vision. Not terrible, but definitely not good either.

She yawned, feeling a slight tinge of pain in her recovering throat as she did so, and she focused on Mikasa and Isabel sitting beside her, crocheting as they did so often nowadays. It was a good pastime to fill the dreadful bore of winter. Hanji had noticed of late that the younger girl's stomach, while still small, was swelling rapidly.

"Sometimes I wonder." Isabel suddenly said, smiling fondly as she crocheted, her fingers working all the while she spoke, "Whether or not Farlan and I are going to have a baby soon."

That got both of her female companion's complete and utmost attention, "Are you expecting _too?_ " Mikasa asked, excited.

"No, no." Isabel chuckled, "At least that I know of, I'm just considering it."

"Considering?" Hanji mumbled, and a sudden thought struck her, "How have you avoided it so long?" she asked, surely there might have been one or more with the amount of time the two had been together. And yet there wasn't. Why was that?

"I drink moon tea." Isabel said simply.

"You mean that smelly stuff?" Mikasa's nose scrunched up in distaste.

"Well, _you_ won't be needin' it anytime soon." Isabel said, a light scolding evident in her tone, and the raven-haired girl shrunk noticeably in her seat. "Hanji, on the other hand..." she trailed off, considering, "How have _you_ avoided it so long?"

Hanji blinked, "Uh...I haven't actually...thought about it?" she said, cringing at the disapproving glare Isabel was gracing her with.

"You should. If you aren't prepared, like Mikasa here, it could very well be a terrifying experience. Add on to that the fact that I don't know if Levi is prepared, or even _wanting_ children. When was your last cycle?" Isabel asked.

"I'm actually still on it." Hanji said, proud.

"Lucky only this time." Isabel shot her down, still fixing her with a strong glare, "I'll make you the moon tea and show you how to prepare it, you need to drink it weekly otherwise you'll likely find yourself in Mikasa's condition." to which the girl in question pursed her lip.

"It's not a _condition._ I ain't helpless." Mikasa mumbled.

"Anyway, are you two frequent?" Isabel asked, and Hanji blinked before she processed that question and flushed bright red.

"Frequent?!" she exclaimed, incredulous and embarrassed, "That's...that's private! I don't need to share any such details." she folded her arms under the thick quilt she wore, turning her head only to peek at her companions out of the corner of her eye.

Isabel raised a brow, a motion in itself demanding an answer.

Hanji scowled, hugging herself as she sighed in acquiesce, "If you _must_ know," she drawled, "Maybe every other day? Sometimes twice...sometimes more." she murmured, absolutely cherry red from her head to her toes.

"Don't be so bashful! Goodness, Hanji, we all have sexual partners here, and we're all women." Isabel said, chuckling, "You may need a second dose of moon tea a week with that amount, in any case."

"Good to know." Hanji grumbled, letting her head loll back against the couch. She truly hadn't thought that far ahead, and the thought of children, especially Levi's children, was a bit harrowing. That is until she suddenly imagined a little baby with his exact face and scowl. Her face immediately twisted into an amused grimace of restraint, then she snorted, and finally burst into raucous laughter.

Isabel and Mikasa both raised eyebrows, but she didn't elaborate for them what had caused her to laugh so hard. She might have, if she could speak...or breathe for that matter.

* * *

About a week of abstinence from Levi had her clinging to him tightly and burying her face in the crook of his neck with a sigh, content to hug him for hours on end now that she was over her illness...

"I have _things_ to do, you know." he said, though she could tell he had missed her affection by the way he held her just as tightly, and she kissed his collarbone endearingly.

"I'm _things_ , right?" she asked, snickering.

"Hanji." he sighed, voice tinged with slight amusement.

"They can wait, hugging right now." she said, giving him a brief squeeze to stress her point, "I almost lost my sanity, remember? Now I need to satisfy my cravings for you. Until then, you are not permitted to leave this bed." she poked him on his pectoral, and he snickered.

"Is that an order?" he asked, bemused, and she looked up at him with a furrow in her brow.

"A _threat_." she said, not in any way less than serious.

He blinked at her, and then scoffed a laugh, "And what, pray tell, could you possibly do to enforce that threat?"

She grinned, snuggling back against him, "I might have a few things in mind." she murmured.

She felt his pulse slowly speed up against her cheek as her implication set in, and her own heart rate began to soar at the prospect. She gave him no time to come up with a response, but instead gently extracted herself from his arms and sat up, giving him a small smile while she set to work pulling at the drawstring of his pants. He simply rolled onto his back and watched her, his breath visibly quickening and his steely eyes darkening as she reached down his trousers and began to lightly stroke him, watching as his breath hitched and he bit his lip, propping himself up on his elbows.

Hanji enjoyed watching his reactions immensely, and she knew she would never grow tired of seeing him slowly lose his composure like he always inevitably did. She retracted her hand briefly to pull his pants down his hips, enabling herself to work unobstructed. She shifted on her knees until she could lean down comfortably, his eyes widened as she gently took him in her mouth and slowly swirled her tongue around.

" _Fuck_...Zoë!" he gasped huskily, throwing his head back and gripping the sheets tightly in his fists, and she had to physically restrain herself from smiling with smug satisfaction as she worked (she had done so once before, and she did _not_ want to relive that chilling experience again). Her hand stroked him all the while, gentle yet firm in a practiced technique she had perfected over the months they'd been together. Granted she had only taken him in her mouth a few times before, as he was rather opposed to the act in general, claiming it was whorish.

 _'Then why are you allowed to do it to me?'_ had been her response, and he had conceded hesitantly.

Soon enough (after an earnest apology for the _incident_ ) she had soon helped him understand how misguided his views were.

She was pleasantly surprised to find she enjoyed performing this for him. She loved to see him gasp and moan and feel his hips jerk against her, lips parting to speak yet never quite pronouncing words, and his eyes screwing shut when he finally came undone. It was always beautiful to watch.

"Z-Zoë, wait." he moaned, and she paused courteously when he motioned for her to.

She released him with an obscene pop, and he gave a small, quivering gasp. "Yes?" she smiled, her fingers teasingly brushing the inside of his thigh.

He reached for her hand and tugged her atop himself, hands reaching for her hips and most obviously guiding her up so he could eagerly slide inside her warmth with a sigh. She read his intentions easily, and just as easily sank down onto him, wet and waiting. She closed her eyes with a sigh and focused on the wonderful fullness he always provided her with as she rode him. His hands gripped her sides tightly while she moved, and she leaned forward against him to kiss him, slow and languid, letting out a hum of satisfaction when his lips parted for her tongue.

He moved one hand between her legs and rubbed some gentle circles against her center, and she parted from his lips with a gasping moan, her breath quickening alongside her pace. His hips bucked upwards enthusiastically to meet her, and she braced a hand on the mattress beside his face to keep from falling forwards.

"Come on..." he murmured quietly, offhandedly, and his thumb pressed harder against her. She shuddered, blinking her eyes open to look into those steely grey irises. The way he stared at her...she felt her breath hitch.

"Say that again." she gasped, her hips still moving unfailingly against his.

" _Come_ , Zoë." he said, a prideful smirk gracing his lips when he realized it had an effect on her.

It sure as hell did. She moaned and seized up, her head falling back and her voice breaking as she cried out. She slumped against him immediately afterwards, panting and kissing his sweaty skin even as he rolled them over and thrust into her as quickly as he dared, desperate to finish as well.

She smiled at his telltale moan, and delighted in the warmth in her loins that followed, along with his body coming to rest flush against her front.

"Mmm..." she hummed, contented and feeling like she was lighter than air. "God, I needed that." she said in a sigh.

"Me too." he panted, his body limp and his breath warming her shoulder.

"I'm never getting sick again." she said, chuckling.

"Good." he said, finally lifting his head to look at her.

"That was kind of quick, though." she said, raising a brow.

He grinned, "Patience, Zoë. There's still plenty of daylight left."

"Good." she said, stretching her arms above her head, "We're gonna need it."

* * *

The three weeks between then and the snows being light enough to travel upon passed so quickly Hanji barely noticed they had even come and gone. The days were no longer than they had been the whole winter, and so the trip to town would need to be completed either very quickly, or she, Eren, Armin, and Levi would need to stay a day at the inn.

Armin apparently wanted some new books, and as such was coming along to pick them out himself.

Eren had decided to come along to see his father, after all, he hadn't been to town in more than two months, and he no doubt missed him. He also wanted to visit while Mikasa was still too far away from her due for him to go mad with worry in his absence. Mikasa was in a foul mood over it, but Hanji assured her time and time again that it was only for a day at most, and the girl had calmed, though a goodbye kiss from Eren just as they left was the only thing that seemed to lift her spirits.

Hanji smiled as Levi scowled at the sweet moment, and she nudged him with a wiggle of her brows. "Oh leave them alone." she said in a murmur, and he rolled his eyes, obviously uncomfortable.

"No need to be so hard on him, he's going to be your brother-in-law one of these days." she added, shuffling closer to her moody lover and leaning her head against his shoulder as he gathered the reins.

"That just makes it worse." Levi groaned, "Oi brat! You coming or what?" he suddenly called, and Hanji jolted at the volume of his voice, though she stayed leaning against him.

Eren said something in a hasty murmur to Mikasa, and the girl turned bright red as he left and hopped into the back of the wagon. A sight that made Hanji smile even wider, she quite enjoyed observing their relationship, so different from her own yet so similar all the same.

"Okay." Eren said, making himself comfortable in the back while Levi snapped the reins and the horses nickered as they started trotting through the snow.

There were a lot of yelled goodbyes, until the remaining members of the family all decided it was time to head back inside.

The ride was quiet, and a bit boring too, what with the scenery being white and grey as far as the eye could see. Hanji closed her eyes and was surprised to be awoken when the wagon stopped, her head resting in Levi's lap and her hips twisted a little oddly so she could lay in the front seat.

"We're here." Levi said, voice soft as he rubbed her shoulder through the thick coat she wore.

"I noticed." she mumbled, sitting up and groaning as she stretched. She glanced back to find both the teens were sound asleep, Eren snoring comically on his back and Armin laying with his head against some of the hay in the wagon, curled up with his knees held up against his chest. She smiled fondly, loathe to wake them, but it was getting dark, and colder, so she hoisted herself up and shook both of them gently.

Rubbing bleary eyes and yawning, soon all were walking towards Grisha's house, and Levi knocked on the door wearily, obviously tired and in need of a nap.

Grisha answered with surprise evident on his features, "I didn't know you guys would be down so early in the year." he said as he let them in.

"We're mainly here for Hanji." Eren said, hugging his father as he spoke, "Apparently she needs spectacles." he explained.

Hanji blushed when all attention was directed towards her, and she obeyed when Grisha beckoned her forward. "Well that's easy, come over here, Hanji." he said, leading her to the corner of the living room, where the door to his physician's chambers was found, and he led her inside, bringing a candle along with him. "Just sit down and let us give your eyes a look."

Levi entered behind them, crossing his arms and observing, protective and wary. Hanji smiled at him, easing some of the evident tension she saw in his stance.

"Please try and read this." Grisha pointed to a white parchement on the wall, of which had bold, black letters of varying sizes drawn upon it. "First row?"

Hanji looked at it, "B?" she said, a little self-conscious.

"Good, second row."

She reminded herself to keep her eyes wide open, "Um...T, L, K?"

"Good, though you _are_ hesitating, can you read the third row?" Grisha asked, studying her carefully as she attempted to read the third row.

It was difficult, and she could barely make out the letters from this distance. She squinted, and it didn't help. Her instinct told her to guess, but she took that as a bad sign, and she turned to Grisha, hugging her arms shyly.

"I see, one moment." the man stood, moving to a cabinet and digging through the contents while Hanji waited, scuffing her feet against the wooden floor and glancing at Levi for encouragement every so often. To which he responded with a small smile each time.

"Look at the letters again, through this please." the man had produced a strange device, of which held a circular lens in each of two slots. She nodded, peering through the lenses and studying the parchment a second time.

"I can read them!" she exclaimed, though her lips pursed after a moment, "With my right eye...the left is still fuzzy."

Grisha nodded, "It's common for a different lens to be used for each eye." he said, pulling the lens in question out of the slot and sliding another one back in it's place. "Try now."

She attempted it once more, "Better...but not quite as good as the right." she said.

"Alright." Grisha repeated the process, and she tried once again.

"There. It's good now." she said, smiling, proud of herself.

"Read the letters for me."

"G, E, B, L, P." she read.

"Next line."

With the lens picked out, Hanji was directed outside while Grisha constructed her spectacles, and after they all had a bite to eat of some leftover soup Grisha had made, she and Levi were led to a guest room by Eren. Upon Grisha's request, they were staying the night there instead of the inn. She and Levi both collapsed onto the mattress, tugging the quilt over weary bodies and snuggling close for warmth. While the fire in the living room of the house was indeed warm, the outer rooms were still somewhat chilly.

"I'm glad that's over." Hanji mumbled, tired and falling asleep.

"Mhmm." Levi hummed, and she opened her eyes briefly to look at his face, relaxed and already drifting away into sleep.

"I love you." she added in a whisper.

He only smiled, too tired to respond, and she kissed his lips briefly before she snuggled up against him, forehead pressed to his warm chest, and fell into a contented sleep.

* * *

In the morning she was woken by a small sunbeam in her eye, streaming in through a slight part in the curtains, and she shifted to roll over in place, facing Levi and nudging him awake. He grumbled, and she sat up, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "Best wake up if we want to make it back up the mountain today." she said, standing up from the bed to go to the water bowl on the dresser opposite the bed and splash her face, along with rinsing her mouth to rid it of the morning breath.

She was soon hugged from behind, and a warm cheek against her shoulder brought a smile to her lips.

"I don't feel like travel." he sighed, and she covered his hands with her own.

"Me neither, once we get back home let's have a day long nap, and then an hour long bath." she suggested.

"That sounds heavenly." he said, smiling.

There was a knock at the door, "Hey guys, Grisha said to come for breakfast." Armin's voice called.

"Coming." Hanji called back, turning in place to kiss Levi chastely, "I'm pretty hungry."

He nodded his agreement, and they both pulled on some shoes to protect their feet from the cold wooden floor before walking out to the dining table. Upon which were plates of eggs, bread, and sausages.

"Where'd you get these?" Armin asked, spearing a sausage eagerly with his fork.

"Being a doctor has it's benefits, as food is most often my payment." he said, amused with Armin's fervor in eating, "And the farmers around here tend to raise swine. I'm surprised you treat them as a delicacy."

"The Ackerman's hardly buy sausage." Eren explained.

"We were saving our money, and sausages are fairly expensive." Levi said, raising a brow, "We may buy some now that our debt is paid off."

"I heard about that, it must be quite freeing to finally have it paid off." Grisha said.

"It is." Levi said, glancing sideways at Hanji to gauge her reaction to the vague mention of Lord Smith, but she was hardly paying attention, predisposed with the task of stuffing her face with food. He raised a brow, and she shrugged when he finally caught her eye. He nudged her under the table in scolding for such uncouth behavior, but Grisha was only smiling fondly, simply amused with the antics of the young people before him.

"I take it we'll see you around more this summer?"

"Perhaps, it depends on if we can get a farm going and off the ground as soon as we hope." Levi said.

"There is suitable farmland up there?" Grisha asked, surprised.

"The land is fairly vast, there's plenty of flat land in the meadows on the west side of the lake. We'll be tilling the ground as soon as the snows break, I need to pick up a couple of strong horses on one of our next trips to town for that. And we'll also be building a second cabin for..." Levi paused briefly, clearing his throat, "For Hanji and me." he said, and Hanji paused, a scoop of eggs falling from her fork as she processed those words.

Grisha smiled knowingly.

"It's going to be a busy year." Levi said in conclusion, awkwardly avoiding Hanji's questioning gaze and the rest of the table's curious looks.

"I imagine so. If you need an extra hand I am more than free to assist, and I'm sure Keith would be willing to lend his help as well if the smithy gets slow." Grisha said.

"I'm going to build a small, two room cabin just beside the one up there now, maybe connect it to our current room." Eren said, "So Mikasa and me can have more privacy, but still be right next to Isabel and Farlan, and have a room made special for t-the baby." he stuttered over his words toward the end of his sentence, quite aware of the stares he was receiving from both his father and Levi.

"That's good, and smart." Grisha said.

"When were you gonna run that by me and Farlan?" Levi asked, raising a brow.

"I just did..." Eren said, blushing in embarrassment.

Levi pursed his lips, obviously holding back a sassy retort, "Just be sure to let us know what you are planning...in the future." he said calmly, returning his attention to his food and missing the teen's dumbfounded expression.

Hanji smiled in amusement at Levi's efforts to get along with Eren. At least he was trying.

"Oh, Hanji, your spectacles are ready, would you like to try them on?" Grisha said suddenly.

Hanji looked up and nodded impulsively, watching the man go and retrieve her glasses. He returned with a clean, shiny, new pair of glasses in hand, along with a case.

"You can put them inside the case for safekeeping, and use a clean rag for cleaning." he instructed, sliding the spectacles onto her face. The metal arms glided comfortably into place over her ears, and she adjusted the metal loop conjoining the lens over her nose until it too was comfortable. It was strange, and she took a moments to blink in disorientation before she looked around, taking in both Armin and Eren in startling clarity she hadn't realized she didn't have before. "Woah..." she said, smiling.

She looked at Levi, and she stared wistfully when she realized she could truly take in every detail of his face now...sweet Lord have mercy he was two times more handsome, and she didn't think that was possible. "I can see you guys so clearly now, it's almost like I'm seeing it all for the first time." she said, grinning widely and turning to reward Grisha with a hug that he didn't quite reciprocate, only patted her arm.

"Thank you so much! I...uh, I brought this." she pulled away to retrieve a rather valuable silver coin from her pocket (one of many she had saved from pawning her jewelry for just such a purpose) and she slipped it into the man's unsuspecting hand, "As payment."

Grisha looked at the coin in surprise, as if he hadn't expected anything in return. "Oh no, any friend of Eren's-"

"I insist." Hanji said, pushing his hand away from herself in a gesture that told him there was no arguing this.

Grisha laughed, "Alright, thank you." he said, slipping the coin into his own pocket.

Levi gave her a lopsided smile as she sat back down, wiggling happily in her seat. "That was nice of you, Shitty Glasses."

Her smile dropped, and she looked at the man, who was nonchalant as he finished the remainder of his breakfast. _'Shitty Glasses?'_ her thoughts repeated, a little insulted by the phrase, and she blinked in confusion. The words had rolled so easily off his tongue it was hard to believe he hadn't rehearsed the nickname. Did he not like her with glasses? She didn't really know what she _looked_ like wearing them, did she?

She finished her own breakfast in a much dampened mood, which surprised her, as it was just a nickname...or maybe it wasn't?

 _'UGH!'_

As soon as she had washed her plate she retreated to the guest room and looked at herself in the mirror. She frowned, considering her face carefully. She didn't look much different, it was just Hanji in the mirror. Hanji with glasses. Why was this bothering her so much?

They went to the general store to replenish supplies while Armin procured some new books, and Levi used the nickname again. She had scowled, her chest constricting with an irritation she couldn't quite explain, and she had stayed awake the whole ride back, spectacles held tightly in their case to keep them safe. Also to keep them off her face, because he didn't seem to use the nickname when she wasn't wearing them.

Upon arriving home she put them back on so she could show Isabel, Farlan and Mikasa, of whom all showered her with praise and compliments that only made her feel a little better. She still couldn't get her irritation out of her mind. She headed to their bedroom, exhausted, and was promptly followed. "Remember what you said about sleeping all day when we got back?" Levi asked, yawning, and she nodded, placing her glasses upon the nightstand and running her fingers through her hair with a sigh.

She tugged her coat off, and then her pants, and slipped into bed.

She heard him shuffle, and then the sound of his boots being placed neatly beside the door frame. "Are you okay? You were pretty quiet today." he said as he got into bed beside her and tugged her close, one arm slung over her waist.

"Just tired." she mumbled, not quite a lie.

"You sure?" he asked."

"Mhmm." she grasped his hand reassuringly and looked over her shoulder at him with a slight smile.

He squinted at her skeptically, but he didn't press the question, too tired likely. "Alright. If you say so." he said, kissing her shoulderblade, and she frowned again, more confused than ever.

* * *

Over the course of the next few weeks Hanji only wore her glasses if she needed to, claiming she didn't want to break them, but in truth avoiding them so as to avoid Levi's new nickname in turn. She still couldn't figure out what about it bothered her so much. Perhaps it was the anxiety of wondering whether or not Levi disliked her glasses, and whether the nickname was said endearingly. That was most likely, as every time he said it she would stress about that very thought for hours.

She also became rather irritable when it came to Levi in general. In her eyes the behavior was fair, as he was irritating her, after all. She was admittedly more moody than she meant to be, snapping at him over simple things like tripping over his shoes when she was the one who moved them. Or him getting too frisky when she was trying to bake bread, she had to restrain herself from throwing flour at him, especially when he said "Shitty Glasses" in passing, as she wore her glasses during.

Nobody seemed to notice her irritation, not even Isabel, who was usually incredibly perceptive of this sort of thing. And as such, she was also frustrated with everyone _else_. Was the damned nickname not in any way strange to any of them? Why didn't _any_ of them notice how much it was bothering her?

About three weeks of dealing with this mood and she finally snapped. She was scooping soup for herself, and Levi happened to say Shitty Glasses yet again, and she felt her cheeks heat up with anger, her body bristling at the words. She slammed the bowl down, splashing some soup on the counter and the floor.

"Would you _stop_ calling me that?!" she suddenly exclaimed, despite the presence of everyone else in the kitchen and the living room. "Believe it or not it's not fucking funny to me, _alright?!"_ she continued, voice breaking on the final word. She took no notice of the absolute shock on Levi's face as she shouted at him. She huffed and closed her eyes in a sigh before she turned on her heel and stomped away to their shared room, slamming the door yet not locking it like her clouded mind told her to.

She sat on the bed and wiped at hot tears that rolled down her cheeks, angrier for the fact that she had cried as well as yelled. And then she relented to her emotions, wearily burying her face in her hands and crying. Finally letting out all her frustration in a much needed sobbing session.

By the time she was finished she had been in the room alone for nearly an hour, and she was curled up on the bed, blinking at the wall while she waited for something to happen.

Maybe five minutes later there was a knock at the door, and the knob turned half a second later. "Zoë?" came Levi's voice, soft and hesitant so as not to set her off again, she figured.

She sat up and cleared her throat, motioning for him to sit. He obliged, shutting the door behind him and moving to sit down on the bed, crossing his legs before him. "So..." he began, "First off, I had no idea you were mad at me."

She scoffed, her lips turned down in a scowl as she glared at him.

"Okay...maybe I did, you _were_ acting kind of funny since we went to town." he corrected himself, and she relaxed...slightly. "So, is it really the nickname that's got you all riled up? Or is it something else I did and that just set it off?" he asked cautiously.

She almost wanted to laugh at how timid he sounded, but instead she simply straightened her back and cleared her throat again before speaking, "It was the nickname. It just irritates the hell out of me."

"Okay, why?" he asked.

She gave him a deadpan look, "Shitty...Glasses."

"Mhmm?"

"Shitty."

"Oh." he said, blinking as he processed that information. "Well, why didn't you say so earlier?"

She groaned, dropping her head into her hands and shrugging, "I don't know."

He was silent for a moment, and then the mattress dipped when he moved to sit right beside her, one arm resting over her shoulders, "Hey." he prompted, and she looked at him wearily, "You know, I really love your glasses." he said, pushing said spectacles back up her nose from where they had slid down, and he gave her a warm, loving smile that made her chest clench in an entirely different way than his nickname had.

"You do?"

"Yeah. You should wear them more often."

She blushed, ducking her head, "I like them too, I can see you better with them on." she murmured, and he kissed the crown of her head.

"As for the nickname, I never meant it in any other way except endearment. You know how bad I am at humor and such, I guess it makes sense I'm bad at pet names too." he said, chuckling, and she finally allowed herself a smile. "But I would have you know that there is no way I would insult you without downright calling you a bitch, which I would _n_ _ever_ do. I'm sorry that it came across the way it did."

She nodded, leaning into the hand he caressed her cheek with, "Apology accepted."

"And finally, I'll tell you what." he said, pulling her in for a kiss, "I won't call you Shitty Glasses anymore."

She smiled, "No...no it's fine. I was only upset because I was unsure if it was meant to be demeaning or not. Now that I know it's just your way of showing affection, calling me stupid names, it actually doesn't sound so bad anymore."

"I'll try to refrain nonetheless." he said, lifting her chin for a soft kiss, "Maybe I'll just call you Four-eyes instead." he said, smirking at his joke.

She grimaced, "Honestly? Shitty Glasses sounds more appealing."

He let out a scoffing laugh, "Alright then." he said, pulling her close so he could embrace her, and she snuggled against him eagerly, glad to finally have that weight off of her shoulders. "Now would you come to dinner and be publicly affectionate with me so the others can rest easy tonight?" he asked.

She paused, gaping, "Oh my _god_...I yelled in front of everybody." she groaned, flopping back against the pillows, "Leave me, I shall lay here and die quietly of embarrassment. " she said dramatically, throwing her arm over her eyes.

"Get over here." Levi dragged her off the bed by her feet and hoisted her over his shoulder as he had done so many times before in the early days of their tense beginnings. She yelped, giggling as he walked out of the room and down the hall.

"Hey guys." she waved from where she hung as Levi headed toward the dining table. Everyone gave her tentative smiles, and she gave them a thumbs up to assure them the issue had been resolved.

Levi placed her on her feet, pointed to the bowl on the table, and sat her down, "Eat."

* * *

That same night, (after falling asleep during a much needed cuddle session) sometime around one in the morning, Hanji was awoken by Levi's hand rubbing softly against her hip and his lips on her clothed shoulder. "Zoë, you awake?" he murmured, brushing her hair back from her eyes.

"I am now." she mumbled against the pillow, "Can't sleep?"

"No."

She lifted her head, propping herself up on her elbows, "Insomnia?"

"Not this time, no." he said, and she looked over her shoulder at him, perplexed.

"Then what?"

He gave her a sly smile, "I actually still feel pretty guilty about making you feel so self-conscious." he said, a finger tracing the contour of one breast as he spoke, and she shivered. "I want to make it up to you."

Her lips quirked up at the corners in a bashful smile, "Levi, I already forgave you, you don't need to-" she paused in search of the right words, "-you don't need to _atone_ for anything. Besides, it was my fault for not being straightforward with you with the fact that there was even a problem at all." she said. Although the prospect of him "making this up to her" was most appealing, she didn't want him to feel like he owed her anything.

"I don't believe I said I _need_ to do anything." he said, voice husky with desire and lips brushing her ear while his hand crept up beneath her shirt and began to knead at her meager breast, "I said I _want_ to." he punctuated his statement by nipping lightly at her ear.

She shuddered at that, her eyes fluttering closed as he brushed his calloused fingers over the peak of her breast. "Mmm..." she sighed, her body now fully awake and beginning to throb with a sudden need for whatever he had in store for her. His free hand trailed over her back, down and between her thighs to drag his fingers over the sensitive skin on the inside of either leg. A motion of which he continued for a minute or so, gently and slowly getting her worked up to the point where her folds would be slick and waiting for him.

"Stay there." he murmured as he suddenly moved, and she watched over her shoulder while he removed his sleep clothes. He didn't need to remove her pants, as they were already gone, as per her usual sleep conditions (a fact he was often nights _most_ grateful for indeed, as like now). She lifted her hips up when he reached for her, propping them in the air with her knees.

His fingers were stroking her within moments, and she gripped her pillow to her chest with a soft moan, pressing her forehead against it. He peppered her lower back and the curve of her rear with long, languid kisses as he worked, laving over her skin with his tongue occasionally. He slid two fingers inside her and curled them downward, making her whimper loudly enough that she bit her lip, trying to be courteous and quiet for her fellow house occupants.

He insistently, firmly stroked that one spot inside her that always made her melt like putty beneath him, and she began to gasp for air, her body twisting and quivering. Her hips jerked against him when he added a third finger, also reaching around to press a thumb against her clit. She could only take so long of those ministrations, and within minutes her body was rocking with the strength of her climax. She muffled her vocalizations against the pillow.

" _Levi..._ " she panted when she finally caught her breath. There was no response, at least a vocal one. He simply moved, and she felt his chest press up against her back, his arms braced on either side of her waist against the bed while he entered her, wasting no time. Not that she minded his actions. Her body jolted in a pleasured spasm, indeed sensitive after such a glorious peak. " _Ahh!_ " she yelped despite herself at the surprise of it, and his hand was over her mouth in an instant. She let out a soft moan as he shifted his hips in the process.

"Shh!" he hissed, and then whispered huskily, "That sounded painful...was it?" his voice was tinged with touching concern, though she was in no need of it.

"Mnn." she mumbled against his hand.

"What?" he removed his hand, fingers caressing her cheek.

"No. _God_ no, it wasn't. _Please_ move." she whimpered, quite desperate for him to fuck her into the mattress. And that was precisely what he began to do, his thrusts slow, yet _hard_ , and she backed into every one of them, gasping and gripping the pillow for dear life as he worked. "Harder..." she gasped.

A tantalizing jolt of pleasure coursed up her spine and coiled in her loins when he let out a breathless moan, obliging gladly, and she buried her face in the pillow to quiet her continuous moans and whimpers. At this point her arms had given way and her knees were well on their way to follow, shaking with the effort of keeping her body elevated. His hand was back at her clit, rubbing slowly to accompany the rapid thrusts of his hips.

She came loudly, only narrowly avoiding waking the household by biting the pillow to muffle her involuntary cry. He followed within moments, letting out a controlled, husky groan and stuttering to a stop against her, his breath shaky and grating. Nearly a full minute passed before she lifted her head from the suffocating fabric to finally breathe, feeling very much satisfied and all the more exhausted. " _Fuck..._ " she gasped, and he laughed, pressing a kiss to her shoulderblade.

"I'll take that...as a sign of a job well...well done." he panted, proceeding to pull out and sit back on his haunches, catching his breath.

She simply groaned, her knees sliding out from beneath her and her body falling flush against the sheets, too tired to move. "I fucking _love_ you." she said minutes later, and he laughed again, standing up from the bed to fetch a cloth.

"Well, I fucking love you too." he said, cleaning himself before rolling her over and spreading her legs so her could wipe her clean, at which she whimpered again, raw and incredibly sensitive. And he leaned down to kiss her collarbone as he worked, sucking sharply and purposefully so that he might leave a mark.

She buried her fingers in his hair and sighed, "I should get mad at you more often." she whispered.

His lips parted from her skin with a pop, and she hummed delightedly, "Oh?" he murmured, lips still close enough to brush against the skin of her collar.

"Mhmm."

He finished cleaning her momentarily and scoffed, "You really think you'll get this _every_ time?" he asked, pulling away from her to toss the dirtied cloth onto the nightstand.

"Will I?" she asked.

"Maybe." he said vaguely, flopping down onto the bed beside her and tugging the blankets up. "But what if _I_ get mad at _you?_ "

"Same difference, just reversed." she said, shrugging. He tugged her closer by her waist and she snuggled against him, her body sagging in exhaustion as she closed her eyes, "In all seriousness, you have my explicit permission to wake me for _that_ at absolutely any time." she said.

"Noted." he said, yawning.

"At _any time._ " she stressed.

" _Goodnight_ , Zoë."

* * *

The snows broke maybe a week later, and the icy meadows surrounding the cabin began to slowly melt away, leaving fresh spring grass behind. Hanji had never been more happy to see the color green in her entire life. She took Chance for rides daily, and she and Levi could finally continue her fencing practice, free of the cold, thick snow.

"Good gravy, you've gotten sloppy."

Hanji scowled from where she lay in the budding grass, the moisture from the melting snow left behind a mushy layer of mud, and she was now covered in it, glad she had worn dark clothes that wouldn't stain. "Not helping, Isabel!" she shouted to the red head, standing up and lifting her wooden sword again, inevitably futile against Levi, she knew, but she defended herself nonetheless.

"Never mind her." he said as she blocked a strike, "You're improving."

She blushed, and he took her distraction to swipe her off her feet again. "Augh! OW!" she yelped.

"Or _are_ you?" he asked, wearing a shit-eating grin that made her want to pounce him and either wrestle him into the ground or kiss that stupid smirk off his face.

"Fuckin' son'uv'a-" she grumbled, standing with the help of his offered hand.

Levi only nudged her in reproach and walked away a few steps before spinning on his heel and motioning for her to get back in her stance.

She charged him, and he threw her over his shoulder easily, she landed on her back again, and went limp, giving up.

"Don't let your emotions bleed through, swordfighting is a delicate art. The best swordsmen are stoic, collected, and precise." he said, and she closed her eyes as she listened, nodding.

"Mhmm." she hummed in acknowledgment.

"Again. Get up."

"Nope." she said, smiling.

"You've barely been at this ten minutes. Up."

She rolled over, ignoring his warning tone, and unleashed hell upon herself. She yelped when his fingers brutally invaded her ribs, tickling relentlessly and causing her to shriek in laughter. "AHH! STOP!" she screeched, rolling over in the mud and struggling in her joint effort to both grab his hands and push them away from her sides.

He smiled, and she grasped one wrist in his distraction, only for him to twist out of her grip and grab her wrist in turn. Within moments he had both her hands pinned on either side of her panting form, straddling her and his face hovering inches above her own. She grinned, and he raised a brow.

"Does this mean practice is over?" she asked.

"You're the one who asked me to train you, stop being so damn lazy about it." he said in annoyance, rolling his eyes.

"Ahh, but there is no allotted time frame for training, nor a deadline for me to master the _delicate art of swordfighting_." she said, mimicking him with a roll of her eyes.

"You're such a damn twerp."

"And _you're_ a handsome piece of meat."

"Shitty Glasses."

"Shorty- _mmm_."

She grinned into the kiss, sloppy and swift as it was, and her body twisted up to try and chase his lips as he pulled back. She let out a little whine of disappointment when he stood up from her and shot Isabel a deadly glare to silence her delighted giggles.

"Ten more minutes, and then you need a bath, filthy four-eyes." Levi offered her a hand for the fifth time that afternoon, and she took it with a sigh.

"As long as you're bathing me."

"As if I wouldn't be. You don't wash between the crevices." he said, walking past her to grab their wooden swords.

"That's the point, I can't do it right or else you might stop doing it for me." she said, catching her sword.

"You do it on purpose now." he said with a frown.

"At first I honestly didn't know, and then I didn't wash right cause I liked you, and now it's just cause I'm lazy." she said, dodging a swing of his sword.

"Liked? Why past tense?" he asked, annoyed.

"Cause I don't _like_ you anymore." she said, pausing for dramatic effect and the typical raised brow reaction, "I _love_ you." she added as she blocked an overhead swing.

He furrowed his brows, his lip twitching upwards and his cheeks suddenly flushing red, and she took her opportunity to sweep her leg. The shock on his face was downright hilarious, and she doubled over in laughter, unable to celebrate her first victory against him. He scowled, and she soon found herself joining him on the ground due to an hand on her ankle, but she could hardly find it within herself to care.

"I got you." she said as she sighed with the remnants of her laughter, and he smiled, obviously against his wishes, and turned his head.

"So you did."

"Does that mean training's over?" she asked hopefully.

"No."

"Aww! But can we stop if I go down on you later?"

" _Shut up!_ " he exclaimed, his hand planting itself over her mouth as he glanced up at Isabel to be sure she hadn't heard that. "And no."

"Mmmph."

* * *

"What are you drawing?"

Levi jolted, and Farlan took a step back with an apologetic look, "Geez, man. You gotta stop sneaking up on me." Levi scoffed, glancing down at the paper he had been scribbling upon for the better half of an hour.

"Sorry."

"It's a floorplan...err, the best I can draw, anyway. I'm no artist." Levi sighed, covering his face as he looked over his work.

Farlan chuckled, "A floorplan? You don't need to be an artist to draw a floorplan. What's it for anyway?" he planted a hand on the desk and looked at the mostly straight lines on the parchment. "And you don't really need a floorplan to build such a simple house." he said.

Levi threw him a glare at the word "simple".

"It's...for Hanji and I." he said, voice quiet.

Farlan was silent for a beat, "Wow, really? You two are _that_ serious?"

"Why is that so hard to believe?" Levi asked, the question itself not directed at Farlan, but the man answered nonetheless.

"Just because I never imagined you settling down, is all." he said, sitting on the bed, "I'm pretty happy for you, you know."

Levi nodded, looking away in embarrassment.

"It's strange, considering how much you two hated each other at first."

"We didn't _hate_ each other." he scoffed, the very concept of hating Hanji was offensive to him, "I didn't _trust_ her, and she was...I don't even know, she just didn't like my demeanor or something." Levi corrected, his memory somewhat fuzzy. Wait, had she been attracted to him since the beginning? Her demeanor...thinking back on it, it was painfully obvious, but he'd have to ask her to be sure, his ego wasn't _that_ big.

"Regardless, you two had a pretty rocky start. I'm just glad to see that you ended up with someone as good for you as Isabel is to me. Hanji's a great person." Farlan said, smiling as he pat his brother-in-law on the shoulder.

"She is." Levi smiled in endearment, thinking of her quirky smile, her nose, her laugh, that stupid face she always made when she was angry...her face when-

" _Shiiiit_ , she's gotta be a _fantastic_ person to get you to smile like that!" Farlan exclaimed, "I honestly don't think I've seen you smile until now, that's kinda creepy to be honest."

Levi's typical scowl returned, and Farlan bit his lip to shut himself up.

"I suppose she must be." Levi sighed, "I was going to ask you after I got it all planned out, but would you be so kind as to help me build this? I'd like it finished before the summer, if I can manage it."

"Of course...why before summer?"

"So we can finally start the crops with some time to spare." Levi said matter-of-factly.

"We...aren't going on any jobs this year?" Farlan asked, surprised.

Levi nodded, "Unless we start the crops too late in the year, I think we can put that behind us now, we don't have a debt, we own good land now, it's nigh time we started tilling it for more than just an herb garden next to the cabin."

Farlan smiled, his expression that of both sadness and happiness, "It'll be strange, adjusting to this new lifestyle." he said.

"But worth it, I am tired of doing dirty work for people like that, tired of being away from half my family for so long." Levi said, putting the schematic, if one could call it that, in his dresser drawer.

"Me too." Farlan said. "It'll be difficult, though." Levi glanced up at him with a question in his eyes, and he clarified, "Adjusting to a new lifestyle. It feels like we've been mercenaries forever, you know?"

"It's only been a few years." Levi said, "But I know what you mean."

There was another beat of silence, and then Farlan stood and stretched, sighing, "Well, best get started then, eh? When do you think we should go to town? Provisions are running low again."

Levi hummed, standing and pressing an index finger to his chin in thought, "Perhaps tomorrow? The market row will be there for the next few days in any case." he said.

"Sounds good, just us then?" Farlan asked, turning towards the door.

"Unless someone else wants to come." Levi said, following him out.

"Alright. Who wants to come to town tomorrow?" Farlan called.

"Me!"  
"I do!"  
"I'll come."

At the chorus of affirmatives, Levi's shoulders slumped.

* * *

The ride to town wasn't as long as it had been the last time, Hanji noticed. She supposed the lack of snow had something to do with it. The day was absolutely beautiful, the skies clear, the breeze soft, and the air warm. Everyone had come along, including Mikasa, though she was going to stay with Grisha while they restocked their supplies in town. Hanji and Eren gave her a hand when they stopped the wagon to let her out, as the poor thing was having immense difficulty maneuvering with her swollen stomach in the way.

"We'll come 'round in a couple hours, be ready to head back." Farlan instructed, and Eren nodded while he led Mikasa toward the house, supporting her with a hand on the small of her back.

Hanji watched with endearment as the two made their way inside, shaking her head in amusement at Mikasa's waddle. She wondered (not for the first time) if she would one day be in the same predicament.

The wagon came to a stop again in front of the bustling market row, and Hanji felt her lips pull into a grin, she had never actually been here, and she was fairly excited. She hopped down with the assistance of Levi's gentlemanly hand (at which she offered him a warm, thankful smile), and turned to head inside, Isabel and Armin hot on her heels.

She had never been to a market row before, apparently it was only set up two or three times a year when the traders came through, and held open for a few days while they sold or traded their wares before moving on to the next town. There were a lot of people, just as much if not more than had been at the festival nearly four months beforehand.

There were many tents and stalls set up in a row passing through the small town, each was manned by a merchant, and they all sold something different. Practical items were few and far between, most had set up to sell anything in the range of exotic trinkets and jewelry to foreign spices and even creatures in some cases.

Hanji had no desire for trinkets, or anything of the like. She was drawn to a book stall, and she picked up the first leathery tome she could reach, stroking the binding with one hand while she traced the engraved title with her opposite. The merchant smiled, knowing she was most definitely a potential customer. She flipped through the pages, but upon finding the contents to be outside her taste, she placed it gently back down and picked up another.

She repeated this process until she had accumulated three books of interest, and then she turned to the stall owner, smiling warmly as she presented the books to him. "How much would these be?" she asked.

"A silver each." the man said, and she smiled, glad to have brought her coin pouch along for the trip.

"Perfect." she said, placing her desired books down while she rummaged through the pouch stringed securely to her hip. She fished out three of her silver coins and handed them to the man before she picked her books back up.

"Thank you." the man said, nodding his head as he received her money, "You may want to find something to carry them with, I wouldn't want to lug those around all day." he said in advisory, and she chuckled.

"I'll keep that in mind." she said, "Thank you.

She turned on her booted heel, strolling back in the direction of the wagon so she could place her purchases there before she continued to explore the rest of the row. For the next half hour she browsed, meeting up with Isabel to look through some weapons at one point, of whom had practically drooled over a brand new, ash wood, recurve bow, and Hanji had insisted on purchasing it for her (as ten silver on a single item was more than Isabel could explain away to Levi).

Hanji probably hadn't ever been hugged so hard.

She was growing tired by the end of the first hour, and she had resolved to browse through some cloth for a dress, a simple dress, of course, she had no need for anything fanciful. She was feeling a brown fabric, it had tiny yellow butterflies embroidered on the surface, and it was incredibly soft, likely a silk. And likely far too expensive for anyone living in the town, besides _her_ that was.

"That's too dark for you. I'd recommend blues."

Hanji jumped, as she hadn't noticed the woman sidle up beside her, "Oh, I wasn't going to _buy_ this..." she trailed off, doing a comical double take as she tilted her head and took in the woman before her. She had never seen her around the town before, but then again she hadn't met _everyone._ And she had only been here a few times. But there was something about this lady...

 _Oh._ That was it.

The lady before her was a noblewoman, Hanji had no idea why the sapphire necklace, gloves, lacy parasol, and blue silken dress hadn't tipped her off immediately. Her hair was a rather platinum blonde, one might even call it silver, but despite that she was rather young, only in her mid-thirties at most. She wore a small, delicate pair of glasses, hung low on her nose, as was the way of nobles. She was also very pretty, Hanji noted, taking into account her bright blue eyes and small, slightly pointed nose, along with a petite figure, full in the hips and in the bust. She was rather perfect.

"I could assume you weren't, I made my recommendation regardless." the woman said, a slight smile of amusement gracing her features.

"Um, thank you." Hanji was unsure of whether to be nervous, as the woman was studying _her_ just as fiercely as she had. She twisted her fingers in her grip self-consciously as those startlingly blue eyes took in her leather vest, tall boots, and trousers.

"Might I ask your name?" she asked, and Hanji nodded fervently.

"It's Hanji." she said.

"No last name?" the lady tilted her head in curiosity, but Hanji could swear she saw a flash of suspicion in her gaze, and it frightened her. It very deeply frightened her, as she had no recollection of having ever met this particular woman.

"Not that I know of." Hanji said, hyperaware that her forehead was sheening with sweat, "Might I ask yours?" she asked tentatively.

The woman laughed softly, "I'm not surprised you don't know me, I hardly visit town. I'm Lady Rico Brzenska." she gave a curtsy (strange for her to do so) and held out a white-gloved hand for Hanji to shake.

Wait... _shake?_ Didn't common folk kiss a noble's hand when greeting?

It was too late, she had already shaken her hand, and now her pulse was racing. There was something deathly wrong with this situation, she could sense it. The hairs stood up on the back of her neck, and she felt like she was being watched, though a quick look around revealed this particular section of the row was fairly empty. No one was watching her but Rico.

"Ah...yes I remember having heard of you now, there was simply no face to match the name." she said nervously.

Rico either took no notice of her plight, or she was very good at hiding her notice. She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Levi.

 _'Levi?! Oh thank god!'_ Hanji practically wept in her head, thankful beyond reason to have been saved from further conversation with this woman.

His voice was borderline frantic, yet another strange thing to happen this afternoon. She had never heard him sound like that before.

"Hanji! We are leaving now." he said, grasping her hand and squeezing a little too hard, she could see terror in his eyes.

"Alright, it was nice to meet you." Hanji said, trying with every thread of her being to stay polite and not run with all her might away from Lady Brzenska. Why was she so scared? Why was _Levi_ so scared?

Rico gave a nod, and Hanji turned in time to miss the glare she sent in Levi's direction, her eyes cold and calculative as she assessed him.

Levi all but dragged Hanji away, and Hanji gladly came with him, her heart never slowing even as they reached the wagon. "I fetched Hanji, where's Isabel?" he asked Farlan, who was sitting with Armin in the front.

"At Grisha's, she walked." he said, tilting his head in curiosity at Levi's frantic behavior.

"Go ahead then, we'll pick her and Mikasa up." Levi said, sitting beside Hanji, who had her knees pulled up to her chest, brows furrowed in worry. He pulled her into a hug, one she didn't know she needed, and she clutched at his shirt. "Did you know who she was?" he whispered, so quietly she might not have heard it if his lips weren't brushing her ear.

She shook her head, "Not until she told me." she murmured back, and she closed her eyes while her body was racked with a shiver.

"Does she know _you?_ "

At that she felt like her heart stopped, and she took a great many breaths in order to keep herself calm. He gently held her by her shoulders away from him so he could see her face, and she stared right back, eyes wide and terrified as she whispered.

"I don't know."

* * *

 **DUN DUN DUN!**

 **Okay, plot incoming, brace yourself my lovely readers. Also, do you have theories for what's going to happen next? If so, why don't you comment what they are? I'd love to hear what you guys are anticipating.**

 **Until next chapter! (Already in the process of writing it!)**


	15. Chapter 15

***Glances at the audience***

 **I just wanna say, this chapter is where this story earns it's M rating for matters other than sexual**.

* * *

"But if you didn't know _her-"_

"Levi..." Hanji rolled over, sighing his name in exasperation. They'd had this conversation half a dozen times already in the four days since getting back, and yet he still hadn't let it go. She could hardly relax as it was, and he was only making it worse by constantly bringing it up the way he did.

"Then how would she know _you?"_ he asked, though he wasn't looking at her, he was staring at the ceiling with eyebrows furrowed and lips pursed in consideration.

"We don't know that she knows me." Hanji said, propping herself up on an elbow and turning his face toward her with a hand on his chin, "We are both making mountains out of molehills. Please stop talking about it." she pleaded.

He sighed, grasping her hand with his own and pulling it to his lips so he could kiss her knuckles, one by one. "I'm sorry." he murmured, "I'm just trying to make myself feel better."

"I know you are, but we need to stop worrying. It will get us nowhere." she smiled slightly at his gentle affections, "We'll stay alert, but that's all we can really do."

"What about Isabel and Farlan?" he asked, eyes downcast, "If they don't know..." he trailed off.

"If they don't know." she nodded, his meaning clear. Leaving their companions ignorant of a possible danger would be downright cruel if anything should eventually happen. But indeed, neither of them had any sort of confirmation that Lady Brzenska had known her. The chances - as Levi had been saying - were slim, if not nonexistent. In any case she had never met the woman before.

Hanji sighed, eyes downcast and her lower lip pursed in tentative thought. "If you want to tell them-" she paused, unsure for a moment, "It was our agreement not to. But if you _want_ to, then I'll support that."

He glanced up at her, eyes blank of any clue as to what was going on in his head, and he gave a slight hum, "I'll think about it."

She nodded, leaning forward to kiss him tenderly before she lay back down and snuggled against him. "I will too."

"Try not to worry about it."

She smiled at the irony of that statement, stroking his arm softly until his breath evened out and he fell asleep, "Look who's talking." she murmured.

* * *

 _'Thinking about it'_ would keep her occupied for a short time, but over the course of the next few days she could no longer think to remember. The issue shrinking into a small speck on the back of her mind. They were too busy with the construction of a new cabin. Hanji hadn't been surprised when Levi officially made it clear to her that he was planning on moving the two of them into a smaller, more private cabin. He'd hinted at it already, when she obtained her spectacles.

They had begun laying the foundation about a hundred yards from the main cabin, close enough to maybe walk to during a blizzard. Though nearer the banks of the lake. The process of which meant a fair deal of digging in the beginning, and took about two weeks. By the end of it Hanji never wanted to hold a shovel again. She had tossed the offending tool to the ground and turned with hands propped upon her hips to survey the work she, Levi, and Farlan had been up to in that time.

It didn't start out looking like much, just a section of moist soil set lower than the grassy earth around and shaped roughly like an L. It would be a small cabin, with one main room big enough for a kitchen and sitting area, and a smaller bedroom off to the side.

It didn't stay a shapely ditch for long. Soon enough with some gravel, clay and some boards hauled up from the lumber mill in town, there was a foundation in place. The rest was simply stacking the logs they were cutting down and nailing and notching in the correct order. With this Isabel lent her hand as well as Eren and Armin, as the logs were rather heavy and the surplus help in notching them was most appreciated.

Hanji wiped some sweat from her brow, rather infuriated with the gradually warming days and the more intense heat of the sun as compared to the lower elevations she was used to from her previous springs. She stopped her now-practiced chiseling of a notch to pluck a splinter from her palm yet again, she was certain by the end of it all she would have splinters in places one doesn't talk about.

"Why are you wearing these out here?" she jumped as familiar hands gently pulled her glasses from her face, fingers lingering to caress her cheek in a gesture that had her flushing redder than the heat could ever make her. She was not deterred in her annoyance by his affection, however, and she thrust her palm in his direction.

"So I can see enough to pull these blasted splinters." she said, rolling her eyes at his question. Levi shook his head.

"You'll end up losing them, or breaking them." he said, sitting down with a ragged sigh and wiping the sweat from his own brow.

"No I won't, I'm incredibly careful with them." she said, indignant. He didn't respond, and she scoffed in offense, "Your faith in my competence knows no bounds." she drawled, crossing her arms.

He gave her a deadpan look, "When I said you should wear them more often I didn't mean while we work. They're expensive you know."

"I paid for them myself!" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air dramatically.

"That's beside the point." he said, his voice soft in a way that made her quiet and still, glancing at him to see his expression distant and his lips set in a slight pout that made her want to kiss the living daylights out of him. But she stayed such wishes for a moment to observe him further.

"And what point is that?" she asked in careful amusement, though his continued silence and lack of response left her truly concerned, "Are you okay?" she asked, placing a hand over his.

He chuckled at that, shaking his head and turning toward her with a slight smile, "I'm fine, Hanji." he said, "Just...tired."

She hummed, "Tired?" her tone implied she didn't believe him, and he nodded, clarifying further for her.

"Tired and worried."

"Worried?" she repeated, and he gave her this lovably pointed look that helped her along to understanding what he meant. "Oh." she said, sighing and clucking her tongue once before she made to speak again, "Levi we said-"

"I know." he cut her off, pressing a finger to her lips to shush her, "Don't think I'm trying to bring it up again. It's just been weighing on me for a while. A shadow hanging over my head." he trailed off, biting his lip and turning to look back at the snow-capped mountains on the horizon.

She nodded despite the fact that he wouldn't see it, surprised with herself over having forgotten their issue. It was saddening to hear that it still troubled him so, and though she knew there was nothing she could do, she was overwhelmed with desire to help him through it somehow. She scooted closer until their knees touched, pulling his warm, calloused hand further into her own. And they descended into a solemn silence, sitting and soaking up the ever-fiercer sunshine and the light breeze.

She turned his hand over in hers, tracing the lines of his palm and pondering over how unfair it was that her hands looked more masculine than his, though that may have been attributed to size...

"You know, I was just thinking that I'm glad we're going to live on our own."

Hanji blinked out of her little reverie when he spoke, looking up at his face, "Yeah?" she probed.

"Yeah." he said, turning to look at her and providing her with a smile.

"Why?"

His smile only turned uncharacteristically shy, and he looked away while his hand gently squeezed hers. He didn't speak, but she felt as if he had answered her in his own way, and she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, blushing.

"I see." she said, bringing his hand to her chest. "You know, you can be terribly romantic sometimes." she added with a soft chuckle, reaching to turn his head and place a chaste kiss on the corner of his lips. He turned further to make that a full-on kiss, and she hummed contentedly, even though it was barely a few seconds long.

"We have work to do." he murmured as he pulled away, cheeks red and his hand running over his face in embarrassment. She let him stand without protest, knowing that even with their close relationship there was still a limit to the amount of affection he could take in one day. It was cute, honestly, that he would get so flustered on some days, more often when the interactions between them were innocent, like now.

"Right." she returned to her chisel with a grin, her day severely brightened as she continued her work. The view of her lover's rear end as he walked away may have also contributed to her newfound cheer.

* * *

It was maybe two weeks later when they finished the roof. The walls were sealed with clay and Farlan was finishing the doors he had so meticulously been working on for the past few days. There was one, tiny extra room in the end. One that Levi had set aside specifically for bathing, claiming he didn't want to walk all the way to his sister's house to take a bath.

Of course he would do so, Hanji mused to herself, but it was nice to have a brand-new bathtub of their own, she had conceded in the end. And he was complaining about her _glasses_ being expensive.

 _'Pfft! Men.'_

It was the first day of April, a bright sunny day, Hanji and Isabel were leading Mikasa, heavily swollen with child, to see the new cabin. It was now complete and partially furnished with the minuscule amount of worldly possessions Hanji and Levi had. Farlan, Eren, Armin, and Levi were all hard at work tilling the ground in the lower fields of their land.

"I feel like a moose." Mikasa sighed, one hand on her stomach and the other holding Hanji's for support as she waddled over the uneven ground.

Isabel cackled.

"Well you don't _look_ like a moose. " Hanji supplied unhelpfully, and Mikasa gave her a deadpan glare that reminded her so much of Levi it wasn't even funny.

"That makes me feel much better." the raven-haired girl said, voice riddled with sarcasm as they came to the new cabins front door. "It looks very nice from the outside." she remarked.

Isabel nodded, opening the door and stepping inside, "Just as nice on the inside." she said with pride, having helped build it after all.

"So why exactly did you guys want a house of your own?" Mikasa asked, making a beeline for the only piece of furniture in the house, a brown, cushiony, upholstered chair that Hanji had bought after pawning another necklace in town. She only had a few of those left so she was rationing them, but their home needed furniture, luckily each expensive necklace was worth quite a pile of coin, and Hanji was planning on purchasing again next time they headed down.

Hanji was rather caught off guard by the question, and she found herself blushing, "Um, various reasons." she murmured, twiddling her fingers and moving to start a fire in the fireplace. They had not quite moved in yet, only having just moved the final piece of furniture (their bed) in that morning.

"Ooh." Isabel teased, winking as she wiped some sawdust from the kitchen counter onto the floor, "Say no more." she said, chuckling.

"Not _only_ that." Hanji sighed in exasperation, shaking her head, "I think this is Levi's way of saying he serious with me and we might...I don't know, marry? At some point in the future." she spoke the latter quietly, with great lack of surety, as she still wasn't quite sure what this meant for them.

Mikasa smiled sweetly, "I think that's amazing, considering Levi and relationships have never really happened before." she said.

"Literally never." Isabel said, sitting up on the counter and swinging her booted legs, "You know you two have broken every record in relationships I ever set?" she pointed out in a huff, though her tone was playful and she had a grin on her face.

Mikasa raised a brow and Hanji blushed.

"That said, I should get on the whole kids thing, wouldn't want Mikasa Junior to grow without a playmate." Isabel added.

Mikasa turned her head, tilting it curiously, "Mikasa Junior? What if it's a boy?"

"Eren Junior then. But you're carrying the baby high so I would bet my money on a girl." Isabel shrugged.

"What does that even mean?" Hanji asked, a finger pressed to her lips in curiosity.

"It's an old wives tale." Mikasa said, Rolling her eyes at Isabel's notion, "There's no way to tell until the baby is actually born."

"But it happens a lot! Ask Eren, he'll know, his dad is a doctor after all." Isabel said, "Trust me, it's a girl. And I _am_ going to say I told you so when she's born." she crossed her arms and stuck her nose in the air, smiling.

"Whatever you say." Mikasa exhaled the words, rubbing her stomach and lower back as she adjusted her seating.

"Is your back treating you alright?" Hanji asked, sitting crosslegged on the floor in front of the chair.

"It just aches a lot recently." Mikasa said with a shrug, and Hanji nodded.

She took the younger girl's swollen foot in her hand to place it in her lap, removing the shoe and proceeding to massage it in a practiced form she had learned over the past months. Mikasa hummed happily, murmuring a thanks, and Hanji nodded as she rolled her thumbs in circular motions over the sole of her foot.

"I'll do the other." Isabel sat down on the opposite side of Hanji and took up Mikasa's other foot to do the same, Mikasa chuckled lightly at the sight.

"I don't know what I'd do without you guys." she sighed.

"Die of swollen feet?" Isabel supplied, and Hanji scoffed, laughing.

* * *

Hanji was a little restless lately. Levi was always tired from working to till the ground, and when he came home a bath was usually all he could think of. Nearly two weeks of the same, monotonous pattern. So yes, living alone in a little cabin wasn't exactly _doing it_ for her. Funny how she thought it would be like living a dream, but in reality she was just wondering around all day looking for something to do. It irked her to no end, and on top of it all she was starved for physical attention as well.

Granted they had quickies every here and again, but it just wasn't the same as when they took the time to be thorough with one another. She was eyeing him like a predator does a piece of meat every time he came home, and every time he was too bleary eyed and worn to understand or notice her little cues.

"I think I preferred the mercenary work." he said on a morning in mid April, and she blinked up at him in surprise as she paused in her crochet.

"What are you doing home? It's a Tuesday." she asked, of course she knew he had still been home when she awoke, but she had been so entranced in her work that she didn't notice he never left the house.

"What? Not glad to see me?" he asked from the tiny kitchen, teasing, as he prepared some porridge.

"I _am_ glad to see you." she said, returning her attention to the yarn in her hands, she was getting a little tired of _that_ too, after a winter of crochet it got a little old. "But I'm also curious as to what you're doing here instead of in the fields."

Levi turned about and crossed his arms, leaning against the counter while the stove heated the water and oats in a pot. His posture was slumped and his eyes droopy, "I needed a day off, or better yet two." he sighed, "It's exhausting, I've honestly never had as much respect for farmers as I do now, and we just barely finished tilling and planting."

At that her interest piqued, "You're not working today _or_ tomorrow then?" she asked to clarify.

"No." he said, closing his eyes lazily, and she grinned.

"That's great." she said, standing and moving to approach him, though not before daintily placing her crochet project on the small side table she had carved herself. After all, it wasn't so hard to learn: woodworking that is.

He opened his eyes and offered her a smile, though she could tell he was still incredibly tired, and accepted her ensuing kiss. "I don't think I'm up for anything at the moment, Zöe." he said when she began tugging on his shirt in question.

And she took it in stride, nodding in understanding. "Doesn't need to be right now, I'm just letting you know." she said, tapping his nose with her pointer finger before she moved away from him, though he caught her wrist before she could leave.

"Hey... don't be upset, okay?" he tilted his head to peer around her bangs, as she wasn't looking directly at him.

"I'm not." she said despite the fact that he already knew the opposite was true. She was ridiculously transparent it would seem, at least to Levi.

"Don't lie. I know I've been neglecting you for a bit, there's no denying it and there's not much excusing it either." he said, pulling her back into his personal space and leaning forward to press his forehead against her collarbone, "I'm just a little tired, give me some time to sleep and we'll spend the rest of the evening together, deal?" he asked, and she nodded.

"Okay."

"Good. Now you better smile before you go back to that damned crochet." he said, peering up at her with a little grin. At such a sight she couldn't help the smile her lips formed. "That's better." he leaned up to kiss her, a rather heated kiss that left her feeling a little woozy, especially with the retreating nip of his teeth against her lower lip... her knees wobbled a bit at that.

"Shit..." she murmured as he pulled back, "You can't just kiss me like that and expect me to leave you alone while you nap."

He shrugged with indifference while he stirred his breakfast, "I never said you couldn't join me in bed." he said, looking over his shoulder to gauge her response.

She only grinned.

* * *

"You should start a garden."

Hanji paused in brushing her hair for a moment before she continued, tilting her head in consideration of the idea. "Oh? Wouldn't that demean the purpose of us starting a farm?" she asked, looking over her bare shoulder at Levi, of whom was very much in the same state of undress as she, and just as sated.

"Hardly." he said, hands behind his head and one knee drawn up halfway while he watched her straighten her wayward locks. If he was honest with himself, he was slightly irked to see his hard earned handiwork brushed away. "Gardening is different, you mainly raise herbs and select vegetables. Farming is for bulk crops like wheat and potatoes." he clarified.

"Ahh." she nodded, turning halfway on the edge of the bed to face him.

"Plus it will keep you busy." he added, eyes unashamedly roaming her figure.

"That's nice." she said with a smirk, returning his amorous gaze.

He chuckled, looking away with a blush and shaking his head, "What?" he asked.

"Nothing, you just look very handsome right now." she said, standing to cross the room and place the brush down on their simple dresser. She was really starting to like simplicity, honestly, it made her feel all the more like a new person.

"So do you." he said absentmindedly, and she practically heard his grimace over his mistake as she burst into laughter, leaning her weight against the dresser at the suddenness of it.

"I look... _handsome?"_ she asked between her bouts of cackling.

He was sitting up now, arms crossed and face turned down in a scowl, "What, you can say I look gorgeous but I can't say you look handsome?" he asked.

"When have I ever called you gorgeous?" she turned and crossed her own arms, still chuckling.

He raised an incredulous brow at her, " _All_ the time. Literally."

She shrugged, "I didn't say there was anything wrong with me being handsome, but it just cements the fact that I'm the man in this relationship."

His face went blank with confusion and she burst into laughter yet again. "What the hell are you talking about?" he asked, his nose twisting as he stared at her.

"I'm taller _and_ more masculine than you, minus the voice. You have more of a set of boobs than I do-" he lifted a finger to interrupt her at that, but she ignored it, "I'm the handsome one, you're the gorgeous one, in fact, one could call you downright pretty. Don't even get me started on your eyelashes-"

"Okay, okay, I get it." he said, scowling.

"But to pander to that point of view would be incredibly stereotypical of me." she said with a grin, staring at him. "God you're so _cute!"_ she sighed, only making his scowl worse and her laugh louder, "Stop frowning or I'm going to have to come over there and take you up against a wall, Gorgeous."

The corner of his mouth turned up at that.

* * *

It was baking day. The ladies got together every Thursday to spend the day baking and gossiping, though Hanji wasn't sure Armin counted as one of the ladies, he was usually there too.

They were baking in pairs, Armin paired with Hanji and Mikasa with Isabel. Hanji and Armin had just popped a blueberry pie into the oven and were making tea while Mikasa and Isabel were finishing up with bread rolls.

"Doing all right over there Mika?" Armin asked, and Hanji looked over at the girl in question as she rubbed her lower back and braced her arm against the counter with a grimace.

Mikasa nodded, "Yeah, back pain is just extra today is all." she sighed, shoulders sagging as she huffed out a long drag of breath.

"You sure? Looks a lot worse than your usual bad days." Armin persisted.

Mikasa's features twisted into a frown, eyebrows furrowed, and she pursed her lower lip in thought..."Hmm. Nah, I've definitely had worse." she said with a decisive nod.

"If you say so, just be sure to take a break if it's too much." this time Isabel spoke up, patting her sister on the shoulder with a reassuring smile.

"I will." Mikasa smiled back, straightening up as she waddled over to the teapot to fetch herself a cup.

"How's life over at your house, Hanji?" Isabel asked, finally putting her bakes in the oven and wiping her hands free of flour on her apron.

Hanji smiled, "Better now that the tilling is done, I barely saw Levi at all during." she said, blushing as she remembered the events of yesterday and the day before.

"I know what you mean, I locked Farlan in our room yesterday." Isabel said with a chortle and a week, to which Hanji responded with a sly smile.

"Eww." Armin said, scooping up his teacup and heading over to the living room to lounge on the couch.

"I only _wish_ I could do that." Mikasa sighed, taking her seat at the dining table and leaning back against the chair.

"Aww, poor dear." Isabel cooed, sitting beside her, "Don't worry, only a month left for you and then maybe a week or so before you're back to your old self."

"More like a couple months after." Armin called out, and all three women shot him a scowl. "What?" he shrugged, "It's true, I read about it."

"Armin, where on earth did you find a book with that manner of information?" Isabel asked in a rather motherly tone, one hand on her hip.

The boy shrugged yet again, "I spent the night at Grisha's a few months back, remember? I had to have some sort of reading material. His office came in handy."

Isabel made to speak, and then simply shook her head and facepalmed, "I swear." she muttered, and Hanji chuckled softly, sipping at her tea daintily. She'd never really broken the habit of holding her teacup all prim and proper, it was too ingrained.

Mikasa squirmed in her seat.

"I'm going to start a garden." Hanji said.

"Oh that's nice!" Isabel said, leaning on her elbows against the table, "I have leftover seeds for our garden of the year before last. They are dried out but they should still be fertile."

"I was going to buy some seeds in town but that sounds better." Hanji said.

Mikasa grimaced and then suddenly gasped, and all attention turned to her, to which she blushed, eyes widening considerably.

"What's wrong, Mikasa?" Hanji asked in concern, and the girl open her mouth to speak...only to cover her face in embarrassment.

She mumbled something, and both Isabel and Hanji leaned in, "What was that, sis?"

"I said I think I just peed myself." she mumbled, slightly louder, and both older girls exchanged a sympathetic glance.

"What'd she say?" Armin called.

"None of your business!" Isabel called back, her attention focused on her younger sister, who seem to be on the verge of embarrassed tears. "That's alright, Mikasa. No harm done. We'll just go to the bathroom and Hanji can get you a change of clothes, okay?" Isabel stood and Hanji followed her lead, helping the girl to her feet and assessing the damage as they led her down the hallway.

"Did I make a big mess? Mikasa asked, her voice timid and small.

"No, no, it's just on the chair I think and you're close, easy cleanup." Isabel assured, and Hanji broke off to grab a new dress and undergarments for Mikasa to wear.

"Okay." her voice sounded strained.

"You sure you are alright?" Isabel asked, pausing as they enter the bathroom to look at her sisters face.

Mikasa seemed to consider those words for a long moment, grimacing again before her lower lip trembled and she looked up at Isabel with wide eyes, "No...I don't think I am." she whispered, gently stroking her swollen stomach.

"Oh my God." Isabel said just as Hanji entered the bathroom with a new pair of clothes.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"I don't think she peed herself." Isabel said, and as if on cue Mikasa inhaled a deep breath, clenching her eyes shut.

Hanji contemplated that for a moment looking at the younger girl, "Mikasa, are you having contractions?" she asked.

"What does that mean?" Mikasa asked, looking a little panicked.

"Are you feeling pressure in your stomach? Painful pressure? Like maybe...really bad cramps?" Hanji clarified, and Mikasa nodded.

"Shit." Isabel breathed.

"I'm going to go get the boys. Get Mikasa into bed and start doing whatever it is midwives do." Hanji turned on her heel and sped out of the room.

"And what the hell do midwives do?!" Isabel yelled at her from the bathroom.

"How should I know? Ask Armin!" Hanji called back before she slipped out the door, running into the barn to grab Chance. Pulling herself up onto his bare back, she urged him into a gallop and directed him toward the crops.

Luckily, it was lunchtime, and all three of her targets were all sitting in the shade of a tree whilst they ate, easy to find. "Oi!" she shouted get their attention. As if her dramatic entrance and her pulling Chance into a sharp stop that had his hooves grinding deep grooves into the dirt wasn't enough to do that already.

All three wore immediate faces of concern and curiosity as to why she was out here and seeming so urgent.

"Mikasa's in labor." she said simply, and if the situation weren't as serious as it was, she might have laughed at how Eren's face paled within seconds and he suddenly swayed lightly in place. Levi had burst into action from the moment the word Mikasa left Hanji's lips, and he was hopping atop his own black mare and urging her into a gallop, headed down the mountain. Hanji guessed he was fetching Grisha.

As for Farlan, he was his usual calm, composed self. He was tugging Eren up onto his feet and smacking the boy's cheek to snap him out of his shock. "Come on, get on your horse dammit." he said, and Eren was suddenly a scramble of flailing limbs as he leapt atop his own steed and made for the house in the blink of an eye.

"Damn." Farlan said as he watched him go, "Sometimes that boy is as quick as lightning." he chuckled.

Hanji shrugged, urging her horse to follow and ignoring Farlan's cry of: "Hey! Wait for me!"

* * *

"-that's all I really know!" Armin was exclaiming, brushing his unruly hair back from his face rapidly while Isabel freaked out and Mikasa sat on the bed, propped up against pillows and panting softly while she clutched her stomach.

"Oh my _God_ , I have no idea what to do!" Isabel herself was panting anxiously, pacing back-and-forth.

Mikasa groaned quietly as she slumped backwards and both turned to look at her, to which she gave a pained attempt at a smile and muttered: "That one really hurt."

There was a loud slamming of the outside door, and Eren practically bowled Armin over as he came stampeding into the room and slid to a stop on his knees beside the bed. Well, practically is a light word to describe it, Armin was most definitely body-slammed face down onto the floor, and was now muttering quiet expletives as he sat back up, rubbing his nose.

"Mikasa are you okay? Does it hurt? _Where_ does it hurt?" Eren was asking frantically, hands feeling everywhere on her body, her face, her shoulders, her stomach, before she slapped at his hands and shook her head and she tried to prop her self up.

"Calm down, Eren." she sighed, "It's only just beginning and the-" she paused to remember the word Hanji had used and what Armin had told her, "Contractions, they are fairly far apart." she said serenely, and the young man slumped in relief, his forehead thumping against the mattress while he held her hand tightly.

"Sorry, I know I'm overreacting." he mumbled, and Mikasa managed a chuckle.

"You wouldn't be Eren without overreacting." she said. "You have a right to freak out, it's your baby." she added.

He visibly trembled, and she put her free hand over his that already held her other hand, offering him a strained smile. "I'm scared too." she said, her breath hitching as another contraction hit her.

He jolted from the force of which she squeezed his hand, her forehead creasing with effort and sheening with perspiration while she grit her teeth. "Mikasa?" he prodded, moving to sit on the bed beside her and glancing back at Isabel and Armin in worry.

"Levi's gone to fetch Grisha. At the rate he was riding he'll be back within an hour." Hanji said as she came into the room, walking over to Mikasa's side and trying to remember what she herself had read to prepare for the situation. It wasn't much, and the doctor would be there soon, but the least she could do was help things be ready. "I think we need boiling water and clean rags?" she turned to Isabel and Armin with a pointed look, and then considered Farlan as he entered.

"And...I actually think that's it." she said, furrowing her brow as she tried to think of more. She turned to the young couple before her and placed a hand on Mikasa's knee, to which the girl opened her scrunched eyes and looked up at Hanji with a sharp inhale of breath, "Hang in there, sweetheart." Hanji murmured assuringly.

True to her word, Levi had been back within the hour with Grisha riding swiftly at his side. And before long all but Hanji, who seem to be the only one who was staying calm and collected, was in the room with them. And Eren, because Mikasa simply refused to let him leave.

As for the others, Armin observed Levi, silent and solemn, hand propped on his chin as he watched it rain outside. The storm had erupted from the clouds mere minutes before he arrived and the man hadn't even bothered to dry off. He was definitely going to catch a cold, Armin determined. Farlan seemed to be the most collected of them all, though he had no interest in helping with the delivery. A good thing, as his services were better placed out here. While he may have been lounging up on the couch, the position also doubled with keeping Isabel seated to prevent her from pacing a nook into the floor. To make up for her forced lack of pacing, the anxious redhead resolved to tap her foot incessantly and sigh more than once a minute.

As for himself, Armin was worried, anxious, but also excited. It was strange to think of the little girl he grew up with having a baby, but he supposed that was what most childhood friends would feel. He was keeping himself occupied by both doodling and watching his peers, a decent pasttime that would help the seven hours they sat there waiting fly by. Granted the occasional muffled cry of pain was a jarring reminder of what was truly going on, it kept the mood solemn and the atmosphere tense.

Everyone jumped to their feet as soon as the door finally opened and Grisha walked out, a smile on his face that immediately set all present at ease. "It's a girl, she's a little early, but she's healthy." he said.

Isabel pumped her fist in the air and sent a triumphant grin at Hanji, who exited shortly after Grecia and looked positively awestruck with her experience. Isabel then held out her hands on either side of her, parting those who were standing near, "Excuse me for a moment." she said, walking purposefully toward Eren and Mikasa's room.

"Told you so!" the redhead's singsong voice floated out of the room, followed immediately by two very distinctive shushes, and she backed out sheepishly.

"Mikasa is faring pretty well." Grisha continued, "A lot of stamina, that girl." he moved to clean his hands.

"Yeah, it runs in the family." Hanji said, grinning impishly at Levi. He groaned and facepalmed over her innuendo.

"Get a room." Farlan said, pushing past Hanji. "Is it all right to go in there?" he asked Grisha.

"Yes, just be courteous of the babe." Grisha said.

Armin was quick to follow on Farlan's heels, peering curiously at the bundle in a most-exhausted looking Mikasa's arms. Her eyes weren't open, but her hair was raven black like her mothers, and her nose somewhat resembled Eren's, despite being so squashed and pudgy in comparison. Her skin had taken after the olivey tan complexion of her father.

"Isn't she adorable?" Hanji whispered, and Armin had to restrain himself from yelping in fright. How did such a tall, clumsy woman manage to be so silent sometimes?

"Yeah." he answered, only now noticing just how entranced Eren seemed to be with watching Mikasa hold the baby. He was smiling like an idiot with his chin propped on both hands and just staring at the little tuft of thin, black hair that would be visible from his line of sight.

"Like your new baby, Eren?" he asked in a whisper, and his friend gave a start, much to Mikasa's chagrin as he was propping his elbows right beside her.

"I love her." he said in an uncharacteristically soft voice, and Armin smiled brightly.

"That's good." he said, and then a thought occurred to him, "What's her name?"

Mikasa and Eren looked at one another with wide eyes.

"You two seriously didn't even try to think of names?"

"Uh..." Eren drawled, and Mikasa simply blinked, "We discussed it once?" he said, smiling nervously.

* * *

Hanji had visited them every day since the baby was born. A baby whose name hadn't quite been decided yet, so everyone just called her The Baby for now. Hanji would hover around Mikasa to the point of annoyance, cooing and awing over the baby and watching with fascination whenever Mikasa had to feed her or change her linen. And sometimes she had to be shooed away from her by Eren or Levi so Mikasa could go without the older girl hovering over her shoulder all day.

By the end of the first week since her birth she finally got her name. Mikasa was feeding her while cozied up against some pillows and lying comfortably on her side, smiling as she watched her baby suckle contentedly. Eren was sitting in a chair, thumping his foot rhythmically as he usually did while he brainstormed names. He had been at it for nearly ten minutes before he suddenly shot out of his seat, whisper-shouting: "Adelheid!" and turning to Mikasa for approval.

She was startled by his sudden movement, but grateful that he never seemed to forget to keep his voice down around the baby while she slept or fed.

"Adelheid?" she repeated, testing the name on her tongue, it was a pleasant name. Pretty, unique...

"Yeah, we can call her Heidi if we want to shorten it." he said, giddy with anticipation over her answer.

Mikasa hummed, considering, and she looked down at the babe at her breast, pursing her lips. It seemed to fit her, and she was compelled to agree with Eren, imagining always shouting the name at the top of her lungs when this little baby eventually grew into a mischievous young girl. "I like it." she said with a smile, "Adelheid it is then."

Eren sighed, slumping as he sat back down in his seat, "Finally." he breathed. He'd been pitching names at her day after day for a week, her finally agreeing to one was a major relief.

"It fits better with Ackerman than it does with Jäger though." she said absentmindedly.

He scoffed a laugh, "Well I'll just have to take _your_ maiden name then, won't I?." he said.

She chuckled and shook her head with a smile, "Silly boy." she murmured.

"Hey now, I'm not a boy anymore, I've got a woman-" he pointed to her, "A baby-" he pointed to Adelheid, "And one of these days I'll have a house." he said, his tone playful.

She only gave him this endearing glance that made his heart race, "You'll always be a silly boy to me, Eren."

He went bright red and nodded sheepishly, rubbing the back of his beck and smiling, "Yeah." he muttered.

* * *

It was a rather gloomy day, the sun hidden behind the clouds and rain pelting lightly at the windows. The smell of wet earth and pine filled the cabin, making her warm bed all the more cozy. But Hanji could hardly be bothered to notice such things when she awoke that day. When she did wake, it was to kisses on her clothed shoulder, a hand stroking her bare hip, and a warm, giddy feeling flooding her body as she rolled to face her lover, who seemed most intent on performing amorous activities that morning. As if they hadn't been all over one another the day before.

Not that she minded it at all. Not in the slightest.

"Hey, Gorgeous." she said, shielding her lips with a hand so he might be saved from her morning breath.

"Hey." he replied, gesturing over her shoulder to the glass of water on the nightstand.

She raised a brow at him as she sat up. "Did you plan this?" she asked, grinning as she set about rinsing her mouth. She was given just enough time to do so before she was accosted, or rather, pulled back down into the tangle of sheets and limbs and quickly pinned to the mattress by Levi.

He was soon nipping at her neck, just lightly enough to give her shivers and make her giggle, pulling her shoulder up to her neck to shield herself from it. "Levi!" she yelped in delight, laughing breathlessly and pushing at his chest to make him cease.

The playfulness of it quickly morphed into something more ravenous and languid, and her giggles soon transitioned into soft gasps and moans as he began to lave his tongue over her neck rather than kiss, bite rather than nip. The mild cold of the morning and the chill of rain was soon drowned out by the sweltering heat of arousal. Her skin flushed, bright red and waiting as his lips descended down the plane of her torso to dip between her legs and make her toss her head back, grasping a handful of his hair and biting the knuckles of her opposite hand to muffle a squeal.

And act of which made him raise his eyebrow. Who the hell was she trying to be quiet for?

She seemed to realize that all on her own, and she was soon gasping and moaning aloud, _as loud_ as she pleased, while he worked her rhythmically and consistently. She never did last long when he went down on her, and he brought her to a sudden, crashing crescendo that had her back arching off the mattress and her voice breaking tantalizingly on the note of her final moan. She gave a deep, contented sigh as she came back down from her high, smiling and welcoming his lips back to her own with fervor.

"I could wake up like that every morning." she mumbled as he pulled back and tugged her shirt over her head. She raised her arms willingly and smiled, biting her lip as she tugged his hips into hers with a leg hooked behind his thigh. He ground against her slowly, drawing the impending coitus out as long as he dared. She was an impatient lover and she often grew frustrated with how slow he tended to make this happen. He rather enjoyed it, it made their relationship all the more intense and all the more fulfilling when they finally reached the coveted peak together.

She was having none of that today, however. She took initiative and flipped them over in one fluid movement. It was getting easier for her the more he sparred with her. She was learning well despite the rare number of bouts they had nowadays, though she may not have been using the techniques she was taught for the right intents and purposes.

She was quick and seamless, sinking down onto him as he tried to steady himself and making his head thump against the headboard of the bed when he threw his head back. A brief pause to accustom herself to him and a smile before she was moving. Slowly and torturously enough to make him grip her hips with enough force to bruise and grit his teeth in blissful agony as she rode him. She could never and would never grow tired of the strangled gasps and choked moans she could pull from him with this pace. His eyes always hooded and watching her and irises so dark with desire one might think they had no color. Lips parted and breathy, unintelligible sounds and broken pronunciation of her name...her real name...with every downward thrust of her hips...

It was intoxicating.

She could tell she'd sent him over the edge by the way his teeth bit into his bottom lip and he gave a muffled groan, hands clutching desperately at her thighs. His hips stuttered to a halt on their way up to meet her movements, and he was falling over the precipice. She had sometimes wondered if it was the surge of pride from her accomplishment or the actual watching him come that made her always follow so closely behind him. Not that she really cared, but it was fascinating to ponder.

He slumped below her, and she propped her torso up on her hands to avoid a head-on collision as her body threatened to follow suit. Panting, she watched with a smile as he opened his eyes just enough to look at her, soft blue-grey irises filled with such raw emotion and love and she couldn't help but kiss him when he sighed at her the way he did. He cupped her face with his hands and groaned into it, catching her lower lip with his teeth as she pulled back to rest her forehead against his and catch her already shortened breath.

"Zöe..." he murmured, and she smiled.

"Waking up like that-" she said, exhaling long and low before she granted him another kiss, "-is even better."

He nodded, "Are you hungry?" he asked as she lay atop him and let her body go slack.

"Mhmm." she hummed.

"Isabel said she'd stop by later today." she said, rolling them both over so he could pull out and proceed to clean them up. "After her visit we'll take a bath."

"Okay." she sighed, a little _too_ sated and in all honesty wanting to go back to bed.

"Best get up and dress, throw on a shirt and pants at least. It's not as if Isabel really cares what you wear." he said, stepping out of bed and stretching his arms above his head languidly. An act she watched with much appreciation. "I'm going to go make some breakfast." he said as he pulled on some pants. He leaned down to kiss her before he walked out of their bedroom.

"I'll be right out." Hanji rolled over and hugged the tangled blankets to her chest, inhaling deeply the scent of sweat, sex, and best of all: Levi. The wonderful earthy smell he always had soothed every manner of her being, and she smiled brightly as she made to get ready for what was panning out to be a lazy day so far.

Which seemed to be right. Her breakfast of eggs and toasted bread with Levi at their quaint little dining table was both relaxed and quiet. Small talk peppered throughout, but most of it was spent in an enjoyable silence as they listened to the rain and watched it patter outside their window. Afterward she read a book aloud, sprawled on the couch with Levi laying lazily between her legs and resting his head on her abdomen as he listened.

It was only when her smooth voice was interrupted by a knock at the door did the peace of the day seem to break. Not that they didn't enjoy Isabel visiting, far from it, but they were having a very much You and Me day, and they were loathe to share their time with another.

"Strange of her to knock." Levi remarked as he stood, chuckling.

"She doesn't want to get an eyeful like last time." Hanji shrugged, her eyes following him to the door.

Levi was still looking at her as he opened the door, smiling smugly at the memory while he addressed their visitor. "You know Isabel, I never thought I'd live to see the day when you would-"

Hanji blinked at the sudden pause, despite having been watching the whole time. Time seemed to slow and Levi's breath caught before the slightest sound of a choking gasp and another strange sound that Hanji had never heard before as his body went rigid, curling inward just slightly. Only when the alarms bells finally started to ring in her head did she realize what was happening. She dropped the book to the floor as she shot to her feet, her blood going frigidly cold as she gasped.

It most definitely wasn't Isabel at the door, it was a man. More than one, and that one with his hand on Levi's shoulder...

"What...?" she breathed, hardly daring, nor wanting, to believe her eyes.

Her heart rate was rocketing at this point, booming like a drum in her ears. Her assessment of the situation was proven correct when Levi was released from the man's hold and he stumbled backward, a few droplets of blood landing with a sickeningly wet splat on the floor. He himself followed soon after, collapsing as his legs gave way without so much as a grunt or a groan.

Hanji was still for a mere second longer before she finally found her voice: she screamed in horror. The bloodcurdling sound was deafening even to her own ears. She rushed to him without even thinking twice, bruising her knees with the violent impact of landing on the floor beside him. But she could hardly care about such a thing when the love of her life was gradually going pale as a ghost, trembling on the floor and staring at the ceiling in shock, hands pressed into a weeping wound in his abdomen.

"Levi! _LEVI!"_ she cried, pulling him into her lap with shaking arms, her lip quivering violently and her eyes finally beginning to water as the gravity of the situation came crashing down upon her. "O-oh my god..." she whimpered, pressing her own trembling hand to the wound to stop the bleeding, there were voices debating something in the background of her periphery, but she only had eyes and ears for Levi. "No, no, _no!"_ she rasped, her breath coming less and less frequently as panic gripped her.

He blinked, finally turning to look at her, and his lips moved but she couldn't hear his voice. She pressed her ear to his lips.

"Wh-what is it? Oh _God..."_ she sobbed, she was hiccuping and blubbering the words in her panic, but his words, his voice, if not for the strain of speaking, were clear as day and deathly calm.

"Scream. Fight." was all he murmured, and her body shook violently with the realization. Their cabin. It was barely a hundred yards from Isabel...from Farlan...they would _hear_. Even if she was taken, or worse, at least Levi would have a chance! At least he might live!

She didn't care if he was trying to help her save herself, she would give herself a thousand times over before she let anything happen to him.

She felt dastardly hands grip her arms a moment later, ripping her away from him. And she _screamed_. She screamed Levi's name, screamed for help, and continued screaming even when they smacked her over the head and commanded in gruff voices that she stop. They didn't hit her nearly hard enough to have an effect, not that she would stop for anything less then them knocking her out cold. She threw her head back and thrashed and yelled and shouted, scrambling for some sort of foothold so she might fight, but they were carrying her now and she couldn't find one. And yet they were being far too gentle for a kidnapping. She realized with a start that perhaps she was meant to come out of this unscathed, she wasn't meant to be _hurt._

She was going to attempt to use it to her advantage. Her bucking and screeching doubled, and only after a particularly brave thug thumped her over the head hard enough to make her dizzy did she pause for even a second. Her heart was racing with adrenaline and effort, her throat becoming hoarse, yet she still screamed and fought as long and loud as she could. Even when she was being tossed over the back of a horse, hands and feet bound despite her constant kicking and struggling.

On her last scream her throat suddenly cracked painfully, cutting off her voice and making her cry out in both agony and despair. She could only muster the slightest whisper of a hoarse scream that sounded like the far away shrill of a banshee, her own ears barely able to pick it up.

The ground had been rushing past her eyes for a time now, and the cabin was out of sight. After a moment of hoping, of waiting to hear some sort of retaliation against the men who had done this, who were _doing_ this...she finally went limp, her body shaking violently with tremors of shock and the force of her constant tears.

Just that morning she had been waking in his arms, she had been riding the waves of ecstasy with him, kissing him, reading to him, laughing with him...

Such a carefree, beautiful, heartwarming memory. And yet now, not even an hour later, he was lying on the floor of their cabin, dying...or _dead_. The thought made her throat tighten and her vision blur beyond comprehension with tears. She suddenly couldn't breathe, she began to hyperventilate, her sight swimming and the world lurching as she began to see stars.

 _'Please let him live!'_ she prayed, she _begged_.

"Please..." she croaked, her voice ruined by her screams and her body running out of adrenaline, shock taking over completely. She fainted quietly, and no one answered her plea.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **I'm so sorry. *Hides in trash can as I await the wrath of my readers***


	16. Chapter 16

**Woo! I'm on a roll! 3 chapters in less than 2 weeks?! The fuck does that happen? You lucky bastards.  
Last chapter though, huh? Yeah, it was a doozy and your reactions were priceless, thanks for making my day lol.**

 **This is chapter is a wee bit short but it has a lot going on so it kinda makes up for the length. Important stuff here y'all.**

* * *

" _Ahh_...shit..."

Armin sat up, rubbing his head and wincing at the prominent welt on the back. Upon pulling his fingers back he sighed to see there was a fair trickle of blood upon them. His hair had been further dampened by the blood and was matting uncomfortably to his scalp, but his mind was not on that. He was focused on why he was even unconscious in the first place. How long had he been unconscious anyway? A quick look up at the cloudy sky was fruitless, and he was up on his feet despite the fact that he was one hundred percent sure he had a concussion. He ran as fast as he could, jumping over obstacles rather than avoiding them, calling out for Isabel and Farlan and Eren.

He needed to get to the cabin! He needed...

"Chance!" he exclaimed, the horse had his bridle on and that was good enough for him. He leapt onto the gelding's back and kicked him harder than he needed to to urge him into a gallop. His ordeal had been incredibly scary, but it was nothing compared to what he dreaded lay ahead.

He had been minding his own business, on his way back from the lake, coming back home from an early day of fishing. Farlan always said rainy days were the best days for fish, and he was right, a string of six had been swaying in his hand as he walked back home. He was halfway there when he was accosted by three people, two men and one woman. Surprisingly it was the tiny, blonde woman who had physically interrogated him, having grabbed him by the collar and hissed in his face the question:

"Where is Zoë Titania?"

Armin furrowed his brow, "Who?"

"You know who. Fairly tall, brown hair, nose like this midget here." the large, blonde man had said in a gruff voice, pointing to the woman holding him.

She managed to elbow him in the stomach while still holding the collar of Armin's shirt in a vice grip.

His eyes widened, realizing who they meant. Hanji? But...they...she...

What?

"He recognized her description." the tallest of the trio said, and Armin gulped, having given himself away without speaking.

"Alright, we're trying to do this the easy way little boy-" Armin took offense to that, these people had barely two years on his sixteen, "-but if you keep withholding that information we're going to have to make this operation a lot more bloody than it needs to be. Tell me right now, that cabin, or _that_ cabin?" the large blonde man had pointed to either of the cabins, and Armin quivered almost imperceptibly when his finger was pointing at Levi and Hanji's cabin down by the lake.

 _Almost_ being a key word.

"That's the one." the woman said, and he widened his eyes at her in disbelief.

"Deal with him then, let's go." the blonde man said, walking towards the latter cabin with purpose.

"No!" Armin yelled, beginning to struggle. He ripped his shirt off to escape her grip and attempting to throw a retaliating punch at the woman, bad move, he should have run. She caught his wrist and sidestepped his move, kicking his legs out from underneath him. He landed with a yelp and then his world blacked out with a swift, sharp kick to the back of his head.

That was how he found himself pulling Chance to a halt outside Levi and Hanji's cabin, his heart sinking with the realization that the door was open and the grass trussed up in a distinct pattern of hooves, leading away and down the mountain. He jumped from the horse, landing with a grunt and running into the house. "Levi!" he exclaimed, having hardly made it inside before his blood ran cold and he was on his knees checking for vital signs with shaking hands.

There was a heartbeat.

He gulped as he pressed a hand down on the wound, which was still trickling blood, though the puddle on the floor was not very large yet. He wagered Levi had been in this condition for no more than ten minutes.

"Okay." he breathed, patting Levi's cheek with a bloodied hand to see if he would open his eyes.

The man only stirred, emitting a soft moan of pain.

"Levi! Don't die on me, now." Armin growled, determined and desperate, he let out a yell, as loud as he possibly could. "Isabel! Farlan! Somebody! Help me!" he called, repeating the words as often as his breath allowed.

"Zoë..."

He gasped at the hand touching his arm, turning to Levi to find his eyes barely peeled open. "Levi! Levi stay with me, you're going to be fine." he rambled, looking around for some kind of cloth to use as a bandage, but his shirt was still back where he had woken up. "You're going to be _fine_." he repeated, more to assure himself than his dying friend. He resorted to tearing Levi's shirt open with a grunt and pulling it out from underneath him to rip it into bandages as quickly as he could. That farm work was paying off in the muscle department, and he thanked the deities that he had been helping out.

He tied the makeshift bandage around Levi's abdomen, making a bundle to tie over the wound itself before he pulled the knot tight. "Sorry." he mumbled when Levi winced.

"Drawer." Levi managed to say, pointing to the bedroom.

Armin looked up at the room and frowned, "What's in the bedroom, Levi?" he asked, and the older man's eyes slid shut, "Levi! Don't fall asleep!" he exclaimed, but a gasp from behind him strayed his attention.

"No..." Isabel breathed, rushing to Levi's side and letting out another gasp, and another, and soon she was hyperventilating, crying out his name repeatedly. "I th-thought I heard Hanji screaming...I should have come faster!" she was soon wailing.

"Isabel!" Armin screeched at her, and she paused, her body shaking as she pulled back. "He's _not_ dead yet, so get a fucking grip and help me move him onto the table. We need to keep calm and deal with this carefully. We can _still_ save him." he said, and Isabel nodded, sniffling, as she grasped Levi's legs and Armin grabbed his torso.

"What the hell happened to him?" Isabel asked, and then blinked, looking around, "Where's Hanji?" she asked, her raising further in pitch.

"Gone." Armin explained, unsure if he had the whole of the situation figured out yet.

"Gone, what does that mea-oh my God, what happened to you?!" Isabel exclaimed, and he remembered the bloody welt on the back of his head.

"Focus! Damnit Isabel." he snapped, and she nodded, gently placing Levi's legs on the table, and Armin did the same. "Now stay with him, I'm riding to get Farlan-"

"Grisha!" Isabel gasped, "He's checking up on Heidi." she said, growing excited, "He has good timing." she murmured.

Armin nodded, "Keep pressure on that wound, I'll be back very soon." he turned and ran out the door, despite his dizziness he leapt right back atop Chance and began his short gallop to the other cabin. He fell from the gelding's back and scrambled to his feet, bursting in the door and shouting: "Grisha! Grisha we need your help!"

"Armin! Heidi was almost asleep!" Mikasa scolded, though she soon grew wide-eyed at his frazzled, shirtless, and blood-stained appearance. "What happened?" she gasped.

Farlan came downstairs, followed by Eren and Grisha. "Armin?"

"No time for what's and why's!" Armin snapped, growing irritated, "Levi's dying back at his cabin and we need Grisha right-fucking- _now_." he stamped his foot and turned on his heel without waiting for a response as he ran back to Chance and leapt atop him once again.

"Eren grab my bag!" Grisha was calling as he ran out after him, a very disturbed and shocked Mikasa and Farlan following closely behind.

Armin lent Grisha a hand and pulled him up behind him on the horse before he spurred Chance into another gallop. "What happened?" Grisha asked.

"Stab wound, lower left abdomen, it isn't bleeding profusely but it was still a lot of blood, it happened maybe twenty minutes ago." Armin explained as he pulled the reins and leapt from the horse yet again, stumbling in another bout of dizziness.

"Got it." Grisha followed him, surprisingly spry, and jogged inside, adjusting his spectacles as he assessed the body on the table. He immediately went to the wound Isabel was pressing her hands against. He shooed her hands away as he unbound it and inspected it carefully, Eren arriving moments after and rushing his bag to him.

"Not much time..." Grisha muttered to himself as he grabbed blindly at his bag and pulled out his needle and stitching thread. "The blade wasn't too big, and more fortunately it missed the intestines, but I think it may have severed an artery." he was explaining as he pried the wound open again, "His unconsciousness isn't a good sign, I believe he went into shock a while ago."

Isabel bit her fingernails, "Can you save him?" she asked in a calm murmur that had Armin slightly concerned for her mental well-being. She looked rather cold and vengeful, and yet somehow managed to look terrified at the same time.

"I can try, no promises." Grisha said, "Armin, Eren, help me out here." he gestured for them to come and hold the wound open, "I need a candle so I can see." he gave Isabel a pointed look and she scrambled to fulfill his need. "Thank you." he adjusted her outstretched arm so the light was where he needed it before he began stitching inside Levi's stomach.

"Doing alright, Armin?" Grisha asked without looking up from his work.

Armin nodded, though he was growing queasy as he watched, he swallowed, "I'm okay."

"Don't faint on me now. Look away if you get light headed." Grisha said, tying a knot in his stitch and straightening to wipe his hair back from his face before he continued. His work went on for maybe five more minutes before he paused to grab a linen from his bag and dabbed at the inside of Levi's wound carefully. He peered inside, pulling the candle away from Isabel and using the light to confirm that he had done sufficiently.

"Alright. The bleeding is staunched, now all we can do is hope he wakes up. I wish I had gotten to him sooner, we might have been able to keep him awake." he said as he stitched up the gruesome tear in Levi's skin and went to clean his hands in preparation to bandage his work.

"So it's a waiting game now." Eren sighed, cleaning his own hands before he braced himself against the kitchen sink and hung his head. "What in the hell _happened?"_

"Armin."

The blonde in question turned his head toward Isabel, who was staring at Levi thoughtfully, "Yes?"

"Tell me everything that happened this morning, from the top, I need three questions answered. What happened to you? Who did this? And why did they take Hanji?" she asked, turning to him with burning jade eyes that made him a little frightened if he was honest.

The boy nodded, "I was on my way back from the lake when they attacked me." he said, "There was a big blonde man, a tall man with black hair, and a short woman with blonde hair." he rubbed the back of his head as he remembered her.

"Is that where you got that nasty bump?" Grisha asked, wetting a cloth and moving behind Armin to wipe his wound clean. "You should probably sit down and relax after I'm done." he suggested when he examined Armin's eyes, "You have a concussion."

It stung when the cloth touched his scalp and he winced, "Y-yeah, I will. But back to my story, they asked me to tell them where a woman named Zoë Titania was."

Isabel furrowed her brow, "Titania? I recognize the name but...hmm..." she frowned.

"I didn't tell them anything, but then they described her..." Armin blinked, remembering what Levi had said, something about Zoë, a drawer...he pointed to his bedroom...

"Wait here a moment." Armin stood and strode purposefully into the bedroom, making a beeline for the nightstand and pulling the drawer open. He scanned the contents: needles and thread, pencils, a couple knives, a whetstone...a piece of rolled up parchment. He grabbed the worn, slightly torn paper and unrolled it, studying the picture with wide eyes. He almost didn't recognize her. It was Hanji, her features incredibly young and childish, but it was her nonetheless. He pursed his lips, reading the small print on the lower half of the page. It said she (referring to a Zoë Titania) was kidnapped, and that her return would be rewarded most handsomely.

He had guessed it right, but the confirmation was a little overwhelming, Hanji wasn't who she had said she was. And kidnapped? He knew _that_ wasn't true.

He exited the room with a contemplative frown as he gestured for his fellow people to gather close. "Long story short, they got the information from me without me even needing to speak. They were pretty perceptive, and then the woman knocked me out. I can't have been out for more than five or ten minutes cause Levi was still awake when I got here." he said, "When those people described the woman they were looking for, I immediately thought of Hanji. And Levi told me about the drawer in there, I found this-" he held out the paper for them all to see, and Isabel took it from his hands to examine it, letting out a small gasp.

"Hanji?" she breathed, tone inquisitive.

"Apparently so." Armin nodded.

"Wait..." Eren spoke, a hand scratching at the stubble growing on his chin, "Does that mean Levi _knew_ she was this noblewoman, Zoë Titania?"

"I think so." Armin said, "He said that name when I found him."

The paper crinkled in Isabel's hands as her hand closed into a fist, and she turned around to stomp over to Levi's comatose body. She planted her hands against the wood of the table, chest heaving "When you wake up I'm going to _kill_ you." she hissed between grit teeth, "You hear me Levi?!" she shouted, "You better wake up." she pressed her forehead to his chest, her voice breaking as she clutched his hand. "You can't leave us like this. I won't let you." she was murmuring, and her companions shuffled, feeling like intruders in the moment.

"There's way too much for you to explain, too much that we need to know. That we need to know to save Hanji, to bring her back. You love her don't you? You want her safe, right? So wake up, _goddamnit!"_ she commanded his silent form before adding softly as she stroked his pale cheek: "Please."

Grisha placed a hand on her shoulder, and her body trembled as she began to sob, burying her face in her hands and sitting down heavily on the dining chair.

"He's strong. He'll find a way to pull through." the doctor assured, and Isabel nodded, sniffling into her palms and wiping at wet eyes. "For now let's transfer him to the bedroom, more comfortable." he said, gesturing Eren and Armin over.

* * *

It was a nightmare, of that she was sure, a horrid dream. One that made her shiver as her eyes slowly peeled open, eyelids feeling as though they weighed a ton. Surely the flashes of a knife, the blood, Levi's paling face, they were all just a dream...

Right?

She might have rolled over to reach for his spot in the bed, had she not realized with a surge of cold fear that she was laying on the cushiony seat of the inside of a carriage. Such a thing she hadn't ridden in for over a year now. She was not home in her bed with Levi by her side, short and grumpy and falsely apathetic and...just a beautiful person. Her memories came rushing back to her and she gasped at the vivacity. Her stomach lurched as the carriage hit a bump in the road, and she sat up despite her dizziness. Her breath caught on a sob as she brought her hand up to her eyes, they were still stained with it. His blood. Levi's blood.

She went to scream, but all that came out was a hoarse whisper and a painful burn in her throat. And then she was panicking, her body shaking as it finally hit home that everything she remembered was real, that Levi was dead. Her eyes welled with tears and she pressed the back of her hand to her mouth to muffle the silent sob. "Levi..." she rasped, her body curling in on itself while she wailed and cried without making a sound. All she had left of her lover was the blood staining her hands, she realized with a twinge of despair in the pit of her stomach.

 _'It's all my fault.'_

She sniffled, slipping from the seat and curling up on the floor of the carriage, hugging her knees to her chest, resigned to her fate.

"I'm so sorry." she whispered to no one in particular, "I'm _so_ sorry."

Was she really on her way back to her old life? Had everything she done been for naught? _Who_ had turned her in?

At that her crying ceased, her mouth forming a rigid line. Whoever they were, whether it had been Erwin or Rico, heaven knew whomever she got her hands on first would not be living very long. She sat up, leaning against the bench and feeling suddenly hollow, devoid of any emotion beside her grief over Levi and losing her newfound family. It was the only thing she would allow herself to feel from now onward.

If she truly was going back to her old life, then she would snuff it out before her father even had a chance to tether her to her betrothed. If she couldn't find a way to escape again. She wasn't suicidal. She knew she could live in a world without Levi, despite how much it hurt to think of it, how much it hurt to know he was dead. But she could never live in a world where she was married to a man other than him. As Levi himself had said, he couldn't let another man have her, and she _wouldn't_ let another man have her.

She peered out from the carriage and saw an approaching castle, one she was not familiar with. She frowned, wiping at the remnants of tears as she sat back in her seat. One way or another she was escaping, be it by death or by slipping away from her captor's clutches. But she would not head back to Isabel and Farlan. Despite her love for them as a family, they would only be in danger again if she returned to them. She needed to leave her country if she was ever to find peace. If she _did_ escape that was.

The carriage pulled to a halt.

* * *

Lord Erwin Smith was aghast.

Why was that? For one, Lord Berner and Lord Titania showing up on his doorstep with barely a day's warning and asking to stay as guests. Secondly, the arrival of three young mercenaries that he most certainly did not know and the one person he was hoping he might never see in the same room with the two lords: Hanji, or rather, Zoë Titania. She was pale, looking rather worse for wear and incredibly haunted. She had barely looked up before she fainted upon seeing her father, but she appeared to be completely untouched in terms of physical well being.

Erwin could only imagine the extent of what had happened. He knew damn well he was not responsible, and there was only one other person who could have known the girl. He grit his teeth while he rushed to Hanji's side...Zoë.

"It's okay." he murmured as he lifted her up into his arms and walked her down the hall to put her to bed.

"I can do that." Erwin looked at Gregor, having been about to refuse him if only to protect Zoë, but he stopped himself when he saw the expression on the older man's face.

 _'Protect her from what?'_ he pondered, _'Her own father?'_ he nodded and passed the unconscious girl into his arms, watching how delicately Gregor handled her. The man was blinking rapidly to hide tears, and Erwin suddenly felt a bittersweet sensation of guilt for having kept the truth from him.

They entered one of the many spare rooms and he placed Zoë upon the bed, hands gently examining her without touching her before he grasped her hands and pondered over the dried, crusty blood caking her skin and her shirt.

"She cut her hair. It doesn't look like her mother's anymore." Gregor murmured, grasping a lock of her shoulder-length, auburn hair between his fingers. "What horrors have you been through, Zoë?" he asked as his finger tracing a faded red mark on her lower neck that looked suspiciously like it had been placed there in the throes of passion. At least to Erwin it did.

The younger Lord had to physically restrain himself from speaking, not wanting the other man to find out that he had known of her location for months. But he wished he could assure the man that Zoë had been most safe and very well taken care of for the entirety of her absence.

"Zoë." Gregor prodded, tapping lightly at his daughter's cheek.

She stirred, and when she opened her eyes Erwin was not prepared for the hatred that burned in her irises as she looked at him.

"Zoë, it's okay, I'm here now." her father was saying, but she was busy pinning Erwin with her accusatory stare. She knew it wasn't rational to accuse him without proof, but she needed someone to blame, and he was there.

"Zoë?"

She blinked, slowly turning to look at her father, she had almost forgotten what he looked like, and she was taken aback by his disheveled appearance. "Papa." she said in acknowledgment, though the rasp of her voice made it sound more desperate than she had intended, and her father gasped.

"What happened to you? You've been gone almost a year. I've been looking for you all over and then some." he was hugging her, and she was unsure what to do, what to say, she only stiffened and let her fingers twitch in discomfort. "Did they hurt you?"

At that she frowned, "Nobody hurt me, papa." she rasped. "I'll...tell you later, I'm tired."

Gregor pulled back, studying her face, and she stared back, unfazed to see tears in his eyes. "You're sure? Are you hungry, though? I need Terence to look you over first."

"I'm fine." she said, glancing at Erwin, who had his gaze elsewhere and looked to be contemplating something.

"I'm bringing Terence in, just a quick checkup." Gregor made to leave the room, "Keep an eye on her for me, Smith.

"Right." Erwin said, turning his attention to Zoë.

Once her father had been gone for a beat Zoë stood, approaching him and grabbing him by his collar, "I hope you're proud of yourself." she hissed, "Levi is-" her breath caught, "He's dead and it's all your fault!" she said, accentuating her words with a fist pounded into his chest hard enough to make him wince.

Erwin furrowed his brows, she... _blamed_ him? "Zoë, calm yourself, I didn't breathe a word of your whereabouts."

"Then _who_ did?" she murmured.

"I have yet to find out for certain."

Zoë's face was only resolute for a moment before her features crumpled. All the hatred fled her eyes and was replaced by grief as she buried her forehead against his chest, her body heaving in a sob. "He...I loved him...and they killed him." she hiccuped, turning away from him and covering her mouth as she hunched over and cried.

"Levi?" Erwin finally registered what she was trying to say, the man was dead? Surely she was mistaken? "He can't be."

"I saw him." she murmured, wiping at her eyes, "I _loved_ him." her voice cracked as she spoke, and she grasped gently at her throat to rub it soothingly.

"Zoë, I may not have been involved, but I'll get to the bottom of this, I'll find out how and why this happened." he approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder, "I promise."

"Is he still marrying me off?" she asked in a monotonous voice, one that worried Erwin to no end.

"I believe so."

She scoffed, nodding, before she climbed back onto the bed and clutched a pillow to her chest, curling up in a ball. "I see."

"Zoë-" Erwin trailed off as Gregor returned with his physician.

The girl in question looked over her shoulder as she was approached, "It's good to see you, dear." the kindly old man had been her physician as long as she could remember, and she sat up with a nod in his direction to at least acknowledge him. She didn't smile. She didn't think she could even _fake_ a smile.

"Let me see." Terence was saying, examining her eyes and ears before gently shooing their company away so that he might perform a physical examination.

She complied and lifted her shirt enough for him to feel at her stomach and back and then he pulled back with a nod. "You seem to be in perfect health, Zoey." the old man said, though his expression was puzzled.

"What is it?" she prodded.

Terence seemed to jolt, and then smiled assuringly, "I'm just curious as to how you were treated is all. I must say, kidnapping, and without a trace or even a ransom, it's a strange thing, wouldn't you say?"

Zoë scowled, already tired of people assuming she'd have been beaten or starved or whatever it was kidnappers did. She was tired of people referring to her friends, her family, as kidnappers. "I suppose."

"Zoë." Terence put a hand on her shoulder, "I need to confirm something, may I examine you once more?"

She raised a brow at him, but complied, growing suspicious, "Alright."

He physically examined her yet again, and he pulled back with a thoughtful frown, "Pray tell, Zoë, when was your last bleed?" he asked.

She was going to answer the question right away, but she paused, blinking.

Her last bleed? She couldn't really remember, wasn't it due last week? No that's what she told herself two weeks ago. When had her last ended? When...they moved into the cabin...two months ago. Her eyes went wide. Her blood ran cold once again, but this time for a reason other than grief or horror.

She averted her gaze at Terence's inquisitive stare, "Last week." she lied.

"Hmm." Terence hummed, "I hate to ask, but have you been with anyone since-"

"No." she said without hesitation, her heart rate smashing the metaphorical roof.

"I could have sworn..." he walked away muttering to himself, and Zoë found herself unable to breathe.

She'd stopped taking the moon tea when she moved, she hadn't even though about it. And now...she gasped and pressed a hand to her lower stomach, imagining what tiny little life lay there inside, and she began to cry. Even if he himself was gone, Levi had managed to leave her with something far more precious than his memory, and she hugged herself in both joy and sorrow at the revelation. She smiled behind the hand that cupped her mouth to muffle her laugh, "I'm pregnant." she whispered to herself.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **WELL**

 **I know it was a short chapter but I'm on a roll here and these are gonna be pumping out rapidly, lol. Hang in there you guys.**


	17. Chapter 17

**I been up in the mountains, working hard at my grandparent's store, but I still found time to write, and behold! Have another chapter y'all. I am working diligently on the next chapter, and we're coming up to the final climax, here's hoping I can finish this story within the next couple months.**

 ***Raises wine glass***

* * *

Erwin arrived unannounced, and while her staff attempted to bar his entry or at least stall him so their employer might prepare to receive him, he was having none of it. He stormed past every human barrier with ease and pushed open the doors to her chambers within minutes of arriving. He ignored the scandalized gasps of her maids, Rico herself turned to face him calmly, tilting her head in scrutiny of his actions.

"Lord Smith. What an...abrupt, surprise." she said, tugging her robe over her nightgown to maintain some sort of modesty at the man's brash actions.

"Rico." Erwin said, voice clipped with irritation. "Might we speak in private?" he gestured to her maids, and the woman nodded to them in agreement.

"Leave us, girls." she said authoritatively, leaving no room for questioning.

Her two maids scuttled out the door and Erwin closed it behind them. He stayed in place for a moment before he turned on his heel, posture betraying the fact that he was very much seething, "What did you do?" he hissed.

Rico raised an inquisitive brow at him, "I'm not certain what you mean. Pray tell, what _did_ I do?"

"Dispense with the pleasantries, you know exactly what you did." Erwin said coolly, "And now because of you people are hurt."

Now she seemed genuinely confused, "Erwin, I truly do not understand."

"You told them where Zoë Titania was." he said, pinching the bridge of his nose with a sigh.

She paused, recalling what he referred to, and then she scoffed, "What, did you expect me to _lie_ when Lord Berner asked me if I'd seen her?"

"Yes, actually, I did." he scowled.

"Why on earth would I do that?" Rico asked, "I know a damsel in distress when I see one. She's been missing for ages and she turns up in the clutches of a band of mercenaries? It's quite obvious what happened to her. I saved her li-"

"You did nothing of the sort!" Erwin snapped, "She left of her own accord, and that _'band of mercenaries'_ was there for her when she broke her arm. _They_ saved her, not you." he punctuated his statement by thrusting an accusing finger in her direction, and then he paused to inhale deeply, calming himself, "You should have talked to me, _before_ you acted. I could have enlightened you to the circumstances."

At that Rico was finally chastised, her lips parted, but she didn't speak for a time. She sighed, gaze downcast, unsure of what to say or think. "I didn't know." she murmured.

"You could have known if you'd thought to ask me." Erwin said.

"You said people were hurt?" she inquired timidly, a tad afraid of hearing what had happened.

"A couple, yes." he nodded. "For one, his wound nearly killed him. And I'm still not certain he'll make it." his voice turned soft, "He is a very close friend of mine."

Rico gulped, looking down at her hands, "I'm...sorry."

"It's a little late for apologies." Erwin said, turning to leave, "If anyone does die due to your ignorance, I will hold you personally responsible. Let us hope, for your sake, this situation is still salvageable. Good day, Brzenska."

Rico flinched as the door slammed shut.

* * *

There was a sharp pain in his side, pulling him in and out of fever dreams in a blurry haze that he had no idea the time of which spanned. Said dreams took it upon themselves to torture him by replaying that day for him, over and over. Eventually the events became darkly twisted and distorted, making him restless enough that he found himself semi-conscious more than once as a result. Figures came and went beside his bed, though he never really acknowledged them. And when he finally found the strength to open his eyes, fully awake, he was initially alone.

He looked around, blinking lazily. His gaze landed on the empty space in the bed to his right with a forlorn longing. The fact that she was gone sank in gradually, and he would deny it if asked, but his eyes began to sting with tears at the thought. He had stared for some time before the noise of the door opening stole his attention.

"Levi! You're awake!"

Isabel rushed to his side, taking his limp hand in hers and kissing his knuckles while tears of relief rolled down her cheeks.

"Isabel." he murmured, attempting to sit up. Though he was halted as the wound he had sustained pulled painfully in reminder that it was there, and he let out a hiss as he slumped back down, a hand pressing against it. "Shit." he panted.

"Don't move, you still need to heal." Isabel said.

"You've been through quite the ordeal, and, frankly, you have a lot of explaining to do." Farlan added, to which Isabel gave him a startled look.

"He's _barely_ woken." she said, "I'm sure it can wait until he's eaten at least?" yet she seemed unsure of her own words, and Farlan shook his head.

"Not if we want to find Hanji, Armin can piece together as much as he likes but the only way we find out exactly what happened and what to do is through Levi here." Farlan said with finality.

Isabel made to respond, but she held herself back and nodded with a sigh. To Levi she looked quite defeated, her posture was sagged, her face weary, and she looked like she hadn't slept in a week. It was probably true, Levi knew that his own injury alone would be enough to steal away her lively personality. Hanji being taken on top of it all was just enough, it seemed, to partially break her spirit.

He squeezed the hand she held his with, nodding to Farlan, "It's a long story." he said.

"Might as well start then." Farlan prompted.

Levi closed his eyes, sighing deeply. They weren't the only ones who were distraught over what had happened, and he didn't know how long he had been out on top of it all. His racing heart took many shuddering breaths to calm, and his thoughts kept turning back to Zoë, where she might be, what she might be doing...

He shook his head to clear his mind.

"First thing's first, how long have I been asleep?" he began.

"Coming up on two weeks, almost had us believing we'd lost you once or twice along the way." Farlan supplied.

Levi's blood ran cold and his heart sank, feeling as though it had plummeted straight through his stomach. They must have seen his pained thoughts mirrored in his expression, for both gave sympathetic glances in return. He opened his mouth to speak, but his voice was stuck like tar in his throat. "O-oh." he gulped, any hope he had woken with seemed to drain away at that. His voice cracked uncharacteristically with emotion as he spoke.

"Are you okay?" Isabel asked, her voice low and attempting to be soothing.

Levi barked a laugh, breathless and humorless, and then gasped and clutched his side, having aggravated his wound. "No...I'm not." he muttered between gritted teeth.

"I know this is hard, and emotional for you, but it's just as much for us. Answers, Levi." Farlan prompted, "Please. The sooner we know the details the sooner we can act."

Levi nodded once again, rubbing his eyes so they wouldn't see them brimming with tears, something they hadn't done in nearly a decade. He let out a controlled breath, long and low, "Hanji had her secrets, and I kept them when I learned of them, out of mutual agreement." he said, his voice low and controlled.

"What secrets?" Isabel asked, her tone easily giving away that she was, quite frankly, miffed. "I thought we always told each other everything." she added, hurt.

Levi removed his hand from his eyes and glanced at her, loathe to see how pitifully betrayed she looked. "It was better..." he began, but soon enough bit his lip, unable to continue telling himself or her the lie that it was better for everyone. And the logic of keeping everything a secret, of which had felt so sound when he and Zoë discussed it, was crumbling right before his eyes. He couldn't believe how stupid they had been, having always prided himself on logic and sound reasoning. He was a little disgusted with himself for it.

"I'm sorry." he finished lamely, quite unable to bring himself to look her in the eye. "We...Hanji and me, thought it best at the time, yet even when we changed our minds we never tried to fix anything. We put it off, both discussing it or acting on it, and for that everyone is suffering. I can't fix our mistakes now." he sighed the latter words.

Isabel squeezed his hand in response.

"Hanji was never who you...or I...thought she was. Though her intentions where never malicious." he continued, "Her real name is Zoë Titania, a noblewoman from Servia. She was roped into an arranged marriage and she decided to escape it by running away. She met us...and you know everything from then on, except that I found out along the way."

Farlan and Isabel digested this information carefully.

"You said from the very beginning that she wasn't who she said she was...didn't you?" Farlan murmured.

"How?" Isabel asked, "How did you find out?" she clarified at Levi's apparent confusion.

"The festival, before winter. Erwin told me, he knew her from when she was younger, recognized her, told me about it." he explained, "What with our...relationship...I was rather shocked and frankly a little betrayed myself, she had always called me out on lying. Little hypocrite." he muttered the words fondly, and Isabel couldn't help but smile at him. "I confronted her about it a few days later, and...we..." he paused, clearing his throat awkwardly, "Well...you know the rest." he finished, most certainly not blushing as he remembered that day.

Isabel and Farlan exchanged knowing glances at that. "And...Erwin is behind everything, then?" Farlan asked.

Levi shook his head, "I don't think so, he told Hanji he wouldn't say anything if she didn't want him to." he said, unsure of whether to doubt his long-time friend. "I believe it was Lady Brzenska. Hanji ran into her while in town and she saw Hanji with me...I figure she came to all the wrong conclusions upon recognizing her."

Isabel and Farlan nodded, "So...where is Hanji?" his sister asked.

Levi huffed, shaking his head, "I have no idea."

"Then what are we going to do?" Isabel asked.

Levi paused, thinking, "I don't know that either...I only know that the only one who can help us is likely Erwin."

* * *

It was incredibly complicated now.

Hanji had no argument for staying at Erwin's estate, and she no longer had the option of the easy way out. She had more than just herself to think about now. She was riding with her father in his carriage, on their way to Cedric Berner's estate. She had barely spoken a word since a new dress was thrust into her hands for her to wear and she was led to board said carriage nearly a week ago. Apparently Berner was not inclined to wait any longer for the arrangement to take place.

As if sensing her thoughts, Gregor placed a hand on hers, sighing, "I would have postponed this, given you more time to recover from your ordeal." he said quietly, and Hanji turned to face him, her gaze betraying nothing of how she was feeling or what she was thinking. A mask of indifference. "But Cedric has told me that he will not wait, he's already waited half a year and more for what was promised."

Hanji blinked slowly, nodding even as she swallowed the lump in her throat. "I understand, papa." she murmured.

"Zoë..." Gregor hesitated, "Won't you tell me where you have been? Who took you?" he asked, and despite her pang of guilt she said nothing. She only turned to look out the window once more, her hand discreetly resting upon her abdomen. By now she realized how rash her thoughts had been when she arrived at Lord Smith's estate. She granted herself grace for having thought as she did and attributed it to her shock and desperation over her tragedy. More composed and thinking for two now, she felt her thoughts were far more clear.

Her options were still limited to two, but they were now different. She could either marry Lord Berner's son and raise the baby in comfort and prosperity under the guise of it being his, or she could leave yet again, and hopefully find some place to raise her child where she would be safe from the will of her father, or anyone else for that matter. Though in that option she ran the risk of raising this child in poverty, which she herself would not mind if she were alone, but she wanted better for the babe.

She was quite loathe to say she favored the first option, if not for herself, then for the good of her child.

"Zoë?" Gregor prompted, his tone pleading, and still she did not answer. He sighed, "Why won't you tell me?"

She looked at him out of the corner of her eye, "Because, papa, I don't care to speak of it." she said coolly, her voice surprisingly steady despite how much she quivered on the inside. He'd asked her the same question every day, and every day she resolutely refused to answer.

He held her gaze, and she stubbornly held his, both daring the other to break it first. He soon caved. He hung his head and exhaled, his thumb running over the back of her hand. "I know I've asked you before. But at least tell me the truth. Were you ever hurt in any way? Did anyone ever force themselves upon you? You are so _changed_ , Zoë, and I can't help but feel something terrible happened to you while you were gone." he said all this without looking up, sounding as broken as he looked.

 _'Hah...terrible?'_

Inwardly she scoffed, her thoughts turning to the day she awoke after breaking her arm...coming to know her new family, laughing with Isabel, Farlan, Mikasa, Armin, Eren. She remembered birthing Mikasa and Eren's baby, teaching Isabel to read, fencing with Levi...

 _Levi._

She remembered when Levi had first nearly kissed her, remembered when exactly she had realized she was falling for him. She remembered that day in the bath, when she first kissed him hesitantly, and then passionately, it was a beautiful first kiss. She remembered that day when they had argued, reconciled, and then fallen together in bed, finally admitting what they both knew all along. She remembered being inexplicably happy whenever he came near. His eyes, his face, his hands, his voice...everything about him was a fond memory.

But then there was the day she was ripped from everything she had come to love and consider home...

She closed her eyes, willing the tears away with a fiery determination. She had cried enough in the week before her departure, and she could stand no more tears, especially not in front of her father.

No. Nothing terrible had ever happened to her, only the most wonderful, and she couldn't help but resent her father for taking that away. Albeit unwittingly.

"No, papa." she said, "I already told you, no one ever harmed a hair on my head." _that_ sounded ironic to her ears, as she herself had chopped off her hair all those months back.

Gregor didn't look like he believed her, but he nodded anyway. "Alright." he said, "Thank you for saying so."

Hanji looked back out the window, dread settling in her heart at the sight of Berner's castle.

* * *

Cedric took Hanji's offered hand and kissed it with a smile, a gesture that she had no love for, but she performed nonetheless, as was customary.

"Welcome to my estate, Lady Zoë." he greeted, and she managed the barest of smiles, so as not to appear rude.

"Thank you for having me, Lord Cedric." she said, the words were hollow.

"You know my son, Moblit." Cedric gestured to the tall young man, only a year older than Hanji.

She realized she hadn't really thought about who she was arranged to marry. Moblit Berner...she hadn't seen Moblit in a few years time, but they had often played together as young children. One could say they grew up together. They had indeed been thick as thieves when they were mischievous youngsters. "Hello, Moblit." Hanji greeted, "It's been some time, hasn't it?"

He was golden-haired and blue eyed, quite like Armin, though his hair was more flaxen, and had a rather nervous personality, from what she remembered. That fact still rang true, Moblit hesitated in taking her hand, and Hanji tried to ignore just how smitten he appeared upon seeing her. He was blushing as he mumbled his small greeting: "Hello, Zoë. And yes, it has."

She could hardly believe she looked attractive enough to make anybody blush. Even Levi, she thought with a sad smile that he would probably kiss her and then send her to bed, telling her to: "Get some sleep, Shitty-Glasses." She'd only slept when exhausted, her eyelids had slight dark circles, her complexion was pale, eyes deadened, and her hair a mess, despite her new maid's best efforts to put it into an elaborate updo. But still despite her haggard appearance, Moblit seemed absolutely infatuated by her.

Hanji offered him a more genuine smile, he was by no means a bad person, and he had been a good friend to her in their youth. Perhaps it wouldn't be so terrible of her to concede herself to this marriage, if only for her baby's sake. Granted, her heart would never be his, it would always belong to Levi, whether he was dead or alive. "I haven't been here in ages, would you mind showing me around? I fear I've lost my past familiarization." she suggested, wanting to be away from both her father and his. Much preferring the prospect of his company alone than theirs.

Moblit glanced at his father, and Hanji did not miss how much he seemed to rely on Cedric's approval before he acted. "Um, yes, I would be glad to show you around." he offered his arm for her to take.

Hanji gulped, a thought crossing her mind as she took his arm and began to walk alongside him. Moblit, however submissive his personality, had always kept her secrets, he would protect her when she got into inevitable mischief. He was a true, loyal friend in their youth...perhaps...

Perhaps he might keep her _new_ secret?

But would she gain anything from telling him? Not really, except maybe restraint on his end, maybe a chance to grieve and heal from her loss...he might understand. Just might. But it was a decision she would have to think on before acting. She glanced at the man beside her, catching his fleeting glance and biting her lip in consideration when his face flushed with color yet again.

Well, on that note, perhaps she shouldn't wait, lest he become even more infatuated than he already appeared to be. He had been a close friend when they were children, and perhaps he harbored more than a mindset of friendship towards her back then. She had simply been too young to notice. But now it was clear as day that he had feelings for her...still, despite the years since they'd seen one another. His commitment was impressive.

She herself had never viewed him in a romantic light, despite the last time she'd seen him being around her fifteenth year. He'd always been just a friend, a good friend. She didn't know how a relationship between them would work, or if she even _wanted_ a relationship between him and herself. She didn't think she could ever love someone the way she loved - and still loved - Levi. But perhaps honesty was the best way to begin? However chaste and distant their new relationship might be.

With a sigh, she made her decision. Heart racing, she took a breath in preparation. "Moblit." she began, pausing and glancing around to ensure they were truly alone, "Is there a place we might speak in private?"

His eyes widened, and his mouth opened and closed quite comically, not unlike a fish, for a moment. He blushed yet again and then nodded nervously, "Yes. The gardens, maybe?" he suggested.

She smiled, "That sounds perfect."

He nodded again in return, leading her down a staircase, through the halls of the castle, and out into the lush gardens. Once there she took the lead and brought them as far from the castle as they dared be. She had lied about losing her familiarity with the Berner estate, she still knew it like the back of her hand. Upon reaching a secluded fountain she turned on her heel, releasing his arm and sitting upon the edge of the fountain.

It was quiet for a while. She took her time in building her courage to speak, and Moblit stood just as quietly, rocking on his heels. He opened his mouth to start conversation many times, but stopped himself every time, waiting for her despite how long she sat in silence.

She finally took a deep breath, deciding it was now or never, and she began.

"Moblit, can I _truly_ trust you? Would you still be a confidant for me as you were when we were children? Never telling anyone what I am about to say?" she asked, fixing him with a desperate, pleading look that did not belie how terribly serious she was.

He was taken aback by her sudden solemness, but he nodded enthusiastically, "Of course!" he said, smiling, "I've never told anyone your secrets before now, have I? You know I'll always have your back." he added with a wink.

Hanji allowed herself a smile and a slight chuckle, "No, you haven't. And I'm grateful." she sighed. "Moblit, what I'm about to tell you, it is...an awkward situation, and I fear you may be shocked, please swear to me that no matter what I say you'll still keep your word. Swear this will never be known by anyone but you and I."

Moblit began to look nervous, "I...I swear...but what could possibly be so serious that you need such pledges from me?" he knelt before her and took her hand, eyebrows furrowed in concern.

Hanji cleared her throat, her lower lip quivering, "They told you I disappeared...was kidnapped, yes?"

He nodded, "Yes."

"That couldn't be further from the truth, Moblit. I ran away." she said, "I packed a bag, saddled a horse, and left of my own accord."

His eyes grew wide, both in awe and slight fear, "What? Why?"

She scoffed, "A plethora of reasons, but the most prominent would be my arranged marriage. I wanted none of it." she tried and failed to ignore how his face fell, and she found herself attempting to placate him, "It's not that I don't like you, I never even knew it was you I was promised to. And yet, I might have done the same either way...I'm not certain." she pat the space beside her on the fountain's edge, and he sat down heavily. "I truly was never kidnapped...they found me injured and sick, I fell off my horse and broke my arm." his eyes widened, "Stupid, I know. And...and I-" she looked up at the sky, blinking away tears even as she smiled in fondness at the memory, "I fell in love." she murmured.

He stiffened beside her, whispering a small: "Oh." and then: "Who...who was he?"

At that Hanji's smile widened, thinking of Levi's stubborn state of monotony and the way she could so easily make him break character, whether it be their most tender moments or their most erotic.

"He...well, he was an amazing person."

"Was?" Moblit echoed the word, making her chest clench painfully at the reminder. She had hardly noticed that she'd begun to refer to him in the past tense.

"He liked to act tough, untouchable, but in reality he was the most emotional person I've known. I like to call him Shorty, because he was rather stunted, his forehead only came to my nose. I found it rather humorous in the beginning, and later it grew to be endearing." she spoke reverently, her mind's eye holding a precious image of him sleeping peacefully beside her in bed when they first moved into that little cabin. "He treated me like every moment spent with me would be his last, he was so attentive. He would barely sleep, and he had nightmares sometimes. He didn't know I noticed." she continued, "What we had...it didn't happen right away, only just before winter did we ever act on our feelings." she sighed, her voice quiet with paranoia that someone might hear her confession.

His grip on her hand tightened, "Act on them?" he asked, prodding for clarification. "You don't mean..."

She looked at him, her eyes burning with confirmation to his question, "Yes, I do. I'm no pure little virgin, Moblit." she said, "But know that it was never done in desire to spite you, I never even thought I would see you again. I want you to know, you deserve to know. And I know I can trust you."

He paled. He seemed caught between being flattered that she had told him, and hurt by her words. She could see the conflict in his eyes, and he looked to the side, worrying his lip between his teeth in contemplation. "You can." he sighed, "Trust me, I mean."

"That's not all." she continued, "I'm..." she hesitated, and Moblit closed his eyes, seeming to anticipate what she readied herself to say.

"Zoë..."

"I'm...carrying his child."

Moblit drew in a sharp breath, and she watched as a variety of expressions made their way across his features. "Why are you telling me this?" he breathed, voice hoarse with emotion.

"Because for all I know this child's father is dead, and I need you to step into those shoes. But I don't want you to live believing the child is yours. It would not be fair to have you think so. And I need more than just my own strength to lean on. I know it might seem unfair to burden you with such knowledge, but the last time I kept an important secret the people I loved...love...were h-hurt." her voice cracked upon an unexpected sob, "And killed." she sniffled, wiping at tears that ran hot down her cheeks. "I've learned from my mistakes." she rasped.

Moblit seemed to soften at that, drawing her into an embrace and offering her a handkerchief. "I'm so sorry, Zoë." he said, "And...I'm glad you do trust me enough to tell me these things. I can't quite say how I feel about this, but I can promise I'll help you raise the child, as if it were my own." he held her hand until her crying began to cease, kissing the knuckles tenderly and then standing to offer her a hand, "We'll be missed."

"Thank you, Moblit." Hanji whispered as she stood, wiping at her cheeks, "I feel so much lighter after having told you. You really are a wonderful person, thank you for keeping my secret." she paused, "I just have one more request. It's not fair of me to ask even more of you, but I...when we are married, I will still need time to mourn him. And until I want you to, we...could we not..." she trailed off, frustrated with herself for being unable to voice her plea.

Moblit nodded, "I understand." he murmured, looking a little despondent, but he offered her a reassuring smile, "I promise." he held out a pinky, wiggling it, "Just like when we were kids?"

She giggled despite her remaining tears, hooking her pinky around his and shaking hands like so in a firm seal of the promise. "Just like then." she agreed, leaning in to whisper, "Remember, it's bad luck to break a pinky promise."

"Don't I know." Moblit chuckled, sobering quickly enough, "You know," he said, "Your experience, it sounds like something one would read in a book. You lived through a tragic fairy tale, kind of like the ones you used to read."

Hanji considered that, "It does, doesn't it? Though unlike the characters in those fairy tales I won't get a happy ending, will I?" she asked nobody in particular, and Moblit tilted her chin up to offer her a smile.

"I can try to fix that, however big the shoes I need to fill may be." he said, "I can't say I'll succeed, but I'll surely have tried, when all is said and done."

Hanji blinked away newfound tears, nodding, "That's all I could ask of you." she murmured. He hesitated, and then kissed the crown of her forehead. She found herself leaning into the comforting touch with a sigh.

"Come." he offered his arm again, and she took it, smiling sadly as he was.

* * *

Erwin's sudden arrival was unexpected, but Levi had never been more grateful for his presence.

"Levi, I'm dreadfully sorry to hear what has happened." he said, standing at the foot of the bed, arms crossed before him.

Levi shrugged as well as he could, "It's not as if it was your fault." he said, though the statement was also an attempt at fishing for confirmation that he truly had no part in the incident.

"No, I suppose not. I've confirmed with Lady Brzenska, she had spoken with Lord Berner, and he sent his own little band of favored mercenaries to retrieve the Lady Titania." Erwin sighed.

Levi nodded, "I suspected as much." he covered his face, groaning both at himself and in pain from his wound. "I was such an idiot."

"While that is a fact, we have both made dreadful mistakes. But, thankfully, I feel this situation can be reversed." Erwin said, pulling up a chair.

"Hmm." Levi huffed, carefully shifting to look at him, "How so?"

"Well, for one, I know where Zoë is, and she is not yet married to Berner's son." Erwin furrowed his brow, "That's the only good news, I fear."

"What could possibly be the bad news? I think worse enough things have happened." Levi said.

"The bad news is that her marriage is set within the next week or so, and you have no chance to recover in such a short window of time." Erwin said, pausing before he continued, "And then there is the matter of Zoë believing you to be dead."

Levi froze, the implications of his words sinking in quite swiftly, "You didn't tell her I was alright?" he accused. "Do you _realize_ what she could do to herself out of despair?!" his voice was frantic.

"I didn't get the chance, her arrival was the first I had heard of the incident. I only just found you to be awake and well yesterday, and she's been on the road for a week now." Erwin explained.

Levi sighed, closing his eyes, "It's just one thing on top of another, isn't it?"

"I wouldn't lose all hope just yet." Erwin said, "Her betrothed is a decent lad, honorable, he'd give her up with some persuasion. You and Zoë were intimate, yes?" he asked, and Levi gave him a look, a rather guilty look. "Good." at that the injured man flushed with color, though his expression didn't change, "That helps, in all technicality she is a soiled bride, unfit for such a marriage. If that fact is brought up then she would be freed from her arrangement. If diplomacy fails, well, your sister is quite eager to enact revenge for your injury and Zoë's ' _kidnapping_ '. Alongside that I have a few friends who would be willing to help get her back."

Levi furrowed his brow, looking at Erwin quizzically, "Why are you even considering doing such a thing? Wouldn't that ruin your standing with the lords? Why are you helping me? What do you stand to gain?"

Erwin gave a slight smile at the barrage of questions, "Because I practically raised you, because I watched Zoë grow up. I know her rather well, I know _you_ well. And I have never known her to be happier than when in your presence, likewise with you." he explained, "I could care less about the other lords, granted I do feel guilt over keeping Zoë's whereabouts from her father. He was rather distraught over her loss, and frantic to have found her. While I'm loathe to subject him to losing her again, I'm just as and perhaps even more loathe to see the two of you separated. And as for what I stand to gain?" Erwin hummed, "Nothing really, but I know the pain of being separated from the one you love."

"Marie." Levi murmured, and Erwin nodded.

"It'd bring me great gratification to see the two of you reunited."

Levi gave a smile, rare when he wasn't with Hanji, and nodded. "What do I have to do?"

"Nothing, if all goes well, I intend to travel and oppose her union when we are called to do so or forever hold our peace. If I arrive too late, that is. If I manage to arrive before the marriage then I'll tell Lord Cedric that his son would be marrying a spoilt bride, that should be enough to nullify the union." Erwin said, standing. "Rest, heal, and I'll soon return, if all goes well, with Hanji in tow." he said, reaching forward to place his hand on Levi's shoulder.

"You've already done so much for me, Erwin. I can't ever repay this." Levi said.

"It doesn't need repaying."

Erwin left Levi full of hope and anxiety, waiting impatiently in his bed and trying to sit up more every hour throughout the day. Armin had to force him to lay down. He was not healed enough to leave the bed, yet he wished with all his might to follow Erwin, to proclaim his 'soiling' of Hanji with pride. However, no amount of wishing would speed his health. He felt so useless, but there was truly nothing he could do.

"Godspeed, Erwin." Levi murmured to himself, too tired to keep trying to sit up.

* * *

 **A.N.**

 **Next chapter should be out pretty soon. This is pretty hard to write, having to deal with a lot of talking, emotions, and angst, it's difficult. But I feel I'm doing a well enough job of it. I'm already writing the next chapter, and hopefully it'll be a nice and long one.**

 **I'll see you guys in the next update!**


	18. Chapter 18

**So I was on a roll, running at full speed down the writing lane, and then I ran headfirst into a big ole roadblock called life.**

 **And then just when I was recovering from life's ills Game of Thrones aired season 7 (which was fucking amazing and I'm gonna die waiting till season 8), lol I've been pretty focused on it.**

 **I've been writing on and off since last chapter but now I'm finally sitting down and getting everything out of my head. Sorry for the delay you guys.**

 **Now regarding the chapter itself, I should say, we're getting close to the reason I have this tagged with violence. I've had this chapter written for a week or two now and I feel really bad for not posting it sooner but I'm rather nervous as to what reaction it might provoke. Granted I've had this whole story planned out for over a year now so I should be over my jitters, lol.**

 **Anyway, here's the next chapter.**

* * *

"Zoë?"

Hanji looked up from where she sat in a rather secluded lounge and gave Moblit a smile. "Hello." she said simply. The man opened his mouth to speak, and then stopped himself. She watched in near amusement as he seemed to war with himself internally. "Yes?" she prompted.

He gave a slight smile, scoffing at his hesitance, "Can I ask you something?" Moblit asked, looking down at his twiddling fingers.

"Of course." Hanji gestured to the chair before her, and he moved to sit there, brow furrowed in thought.

"Don't...don't you think you'd be better off telling your father what actually happened?" he suggested.

Hanji was silent for a time, her initial reaction was to say no right away, and after a moment of thought...she still came to the same conclusion. She gave a hum, shrugging her shoulders, "I don't see why."

Moblit gave her a disbelieving stare at that, "You really haven't thought about it at all? You do realize that because of your... _condition_ , you're technically...erm...well I don't know the word for it. But I'm sure my father wouldn't approve of our union if he knew." he explained.

Hanji blinked in surprise. She hadn't thought of _that_.

"And then you would be free to go back." Moblit said, though the prospect obviously made him sad. "Your father wouldn't be able to barter you for marriage to anyone."

"But what of my family's honor and name? I'd destroy it by doing so." Hanji said offhandedly.

"You _truly_ care more about that than your own liberty?" Moblit scoffed incredulously.

Hanji shook her head, "I never said that. It's just that-" she paused, gulping, "I guess I'm fishing for any excuse not to tell him. I'm scared." she murmured. "I don't know how he'd react. And I'm worried for my baby, I don't want anything to happen to it."

"Your father wouldn't hurt you." he placated, placing a hand over hers, "Didn't you see how upset he was over losing you? He will understand if you tell him the same thing you told me."

Hanji looked at him hesitantly, "I don't know..." she said.

"Think about it, there's only so much time before the wedding." he said, standing.

"Moblit." she stopped him by grasping his hand.

He turned to look at her over his shoulder.

"Why...why would you suggest that?" she asked, "Why would you try to help nullify a union between us?"

He stared at her for a moment, lips parting as if to speak, but he hesitated and glanced away instead.

"I know you have... _affections_ for me, more than I'd likely ever have for you. This arrangement is probably all you've ever dreamed and you would be giving it up. So...why?" she asked, voice soft as a whisper.

Moblit shrugged, heaving a sigh. He gave a light, mirthless laugh before he spoke, "I'd rather see you happy than miserable. I figure this is how I'd make that happen." he said, "I did say I'd try my best to give you a happy ending, didn't I?"

Hanji's lips parted in shock, "Moblit..." she murmured, unexpected tears gathering in her eyes at the sentiment.

He gently extracted his hand from hers and left the room, leaving her to gape and stare at the door he had exited. How could he be so selfless? Did he really, truly realize what he was giving up?

She slouched back in her chair, unbelieving. Perhaps he was right. Perhaps her problems could be solved by telling her father the truth. But then again, she was scared enough while confiding in Moblit, her father on the other hand...

She was absolutely terrified.

* * *

For all his promises Erwin was at a loss for how he was going to accomplish all he had said he would. He knew his ambitions were a little unrealistic. He was playing this game by ear, it was all he could do really. His gut told him that this may not end well, but his conscience would not abide by sitting quietly on the sidelines to watch everything play out on its own.

He had ridden ahead of his carriage, it was uncouth but he wanted to get to Cedric's estate as soon as possible. That was _also_ uncouth, but at this point he could care less. Luckily they hadn't set the wedding at the Titania estate, he'd definitely not have made it in time for anything. The past days left him to stew unsuccessfully over how he was going to pull this off. And as he pulled up to the castle he took a deep breath of preparation. His arrival was unwarranted as of yet, guests weren't meant to arrive for another few days, he wagered. He could play a clever excuse. That would be easy.

"Lord Smith...we...weren't expecting you so soon." Cedric said upon seeing him, his face was lit with a smile, a tight one, and Erwin berated himself for coming across as he did. The man was suspicious of his motives, no doubt.

"I have business that takes precedence over a wedding just barely over the date. I wouldn't be able to stay as long if I had come when was customary." he lied easily, and gave a respectful nod of his head.

Cedric raised a brow, but nodded in return despite his suspicion. "As expected of you." he said, "Please make yourself at home, we'll have supper within the hour." he gestured to the halls flippantly, "I wager your entourage arrives soon?"

"Late tonight." Erwin said, pausing, "Shall I take the rooms I used during my previous visit?"

"Yes, yes." Cedric gave a wave, "They are hardly used in any case."

"Thank you." Erwin gave a bow and turned on his heel, more than a little desperate to find Zoë and Gregor. He left Cedric behind to stroke his bearded chin thoughtfully.

Making his way through the castle he had to pause and think over his words more than once. He was uncertain of Gregor's response to what he had to say, though he was already aware of what Zoë would say. She would also be overjoyed to hear that Levi was alive and healing, and she would probably do something reckless. As expected.

"Erwin?"

The man in question skidded on his heel in his surprise as he came to a sudden stop, looking toward the source of the voice.

Gregor tilted his head, curious, "I say, what are you doing here so soon?"

Erwin straightened, clearing his throat, "Gregor." he greeted, "I have something to discuss with you. It is of great importance."

Gregor furrowed his brow, "Alright. Come to my chamber." He gestured, his movements slow and hesitant, no doubt he was worried about what Erwin had to tell him.

Erwin closed the door behind them, crossing his hands behind his back before he paced into the expanse of the luxurious room. He took some time to formulate his words, staring out the window and pursing his lips as he thought to himself.

"Gregor," he turned to the side, just enough so that he might look at the man in question, "I have been your friend for many years." he began.

"Indeed." Gregor nodded.

"And if there were something important that I knew of, you would want to know of it, yes?"

Gregor gave another nod, "I wouldn't have anything less than honesty from you."

Erwin gave a slight grimace at that, but continued nonetheless, "Even if the matter involved your daughter?"

Gregor's interest was piqued, and he took one or two steps closer, posture straightening, " _Especially_ then."

Erwin sighed, "Then I have a confession to make, dear friend." he turned on his heel, facing Gregor fully, "I have known of Zoë's prior whereabouts for months now." he began, and the other man's eyes widened, "Do hear me out, I had my reasons for withholding her location from you." he held up a hand when Gregor made to speak, and the man begrudgingly held his tongue.

"It was a strange thing, indeed, running into your daughter at a festival. There's a small village at the base of the mountain in my lands. She had apparently been living there for some time. Since before the beginning of autumn." Erwin paused, taking a breath, "I confronted her, naturally, and with great disdain she explained to me that she left home of her own accord. She also begged that I didn't tell a soul of her location. And so I respected her wishes." he stopped, waiting for Gregor to react.

The man stared at him, brows furrowed and mouth slightly agape. He was most obviously rendered speechless, and Erwin took his chance to resume.

"Yes. She was there of her own accord, and she was living with a trio of mercenaries I raised and trained myself. You remember Levi? I sent him to you once."

Gregor nodded, "Yes, I remember him."

"Apparently they found her injured and nursed her back to health. She went with them and found a place in their home." Erwin continued, "And according to her, she-"

"Erwin, wait!"

Both men turned to face the intruder of their conversation: none other than Zoë Titania.

* * *

Hanji had been on her way to her father's chambers, determined to tell everything, to come clean and hopefully dissolve any chance she had at marriage. What a shock she was subjected to when she entered only to find Erwin had beaten her to the task. At least partially.

She stood frozen, unsure of whether to interrupt, until she sensed he was going to speak of her and Levi's relationship. At that point she knew she needed to do so herself. Her hand raised and she lurched forward quite abruptly, calling out in a near panic.

"Erwin, wait!"

Her father turned to her, and Erwin as well, both settling inquisitive eyes to her. Her father's were beginning to gloss with tears. She realized in that moment that she was not nearly prepared enough for this conversation. Not to mention her pregnancy, of which Erwin knew nothing.

"Papa, I-"

"Is what he says true? You... _ran away_ , Zoë?" Gregor asked, and she bit her lip, looking down at the floor and hugging her arm to her chest uncomfortably.

"Yes."

The room descended into silence, and Hanji strode over to sit on a chair by the window. "That's not all." she sighed, lowering herself gently and lounging back against the plush of the chair, grimacing at the soreness in her muscles.

Gregor approached her then, kneeling before her and taking her hand, "Anything else can wait. I want to understand your motives. Why did you leave, Zoë? Please tell me the truth in full this time." he said, his tone implicated that he was beyond desperate for her to explain, to understand. She gulped as she prepared herself to do so.

"Papa," she began, placing her free hand over his, "I ran away quite simply because I did not want this arranged marriage. And because I felt like - like you didn't love me anymore. Like I was a goat to be traded for coin." she said, though from the appalled expression on her father's face she could determine that she was wrong on that matter. "So I left. And I," she broke off to chuckle, "I broke my arm. My horse threw me."

Gregor loosened his grip on her hand, glancing down at her arms in scrutinization.

"The left arm. It's long healed...uh-Papa, that's not necessary." she bent forward to catch his attention again when he took her hand tenderly, gently, and pressed his lips to her knuckles, as if it were an apology. "Papa. Please look at me." she prodded, lifting his chin with her free hand. "My arm is fine, see?" she lifted up her hand and wiggled her fingers, "And besides, I had a few friends to take care of me while it healed. They took me to their home, I was family to them, as they were to me. To be honest I never imagined I'd come back, I was so content. I never really thought about seeing you again." she murmured, looking to the side.

"Did you not miss me at all?"

She hunched her shoulders, "At first, if only a little. I guess I associated you with my fear of the arranged marriage and ended up blaming you for things you didn't necessarily deserve. I even went as far as to resent you for not finding me soon enough." she wiped a tear and chuckled mirthlessly, "It's horrible of me, I know."

"You know I can forgive that." Gregor said, "But why didn't you tell me beforehand? Why not just say you were unhappy with the arrangement? You told me you were fine with it."

"There is such a thing as a lie, and you might have known if you cared to see it." Hanji gave a soft scoff, "And as if it could be that simple." she muttered, "Papa, you know you would have been upset with me if I had argued. Don't pretend you wouldn't have." she pulled her hands back, "And there is the matter of my relations with..." she trailed off, biting her lip, "Papa, please keep in mind that this is long done and that there is nothing that can be done to change it now." she said, and he furrowed his brow, unsure of what she meant, "You know Levi Ackerman."

"Erwin mentioned him too." Gregor nodded.

Erwin took a seat, encouraging Hanji with a slight smile.

"Well, he and I...we were intimate. Several times...quite innumerably, actually." Hanji gulped as her father recoiled.

"Zoë!" he rasped, standing and backing up one or two steps. He stood there in shock, his features contorting into anger, and then fear, worry, before he began to pace. "How...y-you...do you realize what that means?"

"That I'm not a virgin?" Hanji drawled sarcastically.

"It means...if Lord Berner finds out... _when_ he finds out...oh god!" Gregor paused to cover his eyes with a weary hand. "Cedric believes you are still _pure_ , Zoë." he uttered between grit teeth, not yet uncovering his eyes.

"Well I'm not." Hanji crossed her legs and situated her hands in her lap. "And he won't be finding out about it anytime soon." she said.

Gregor turned to her, and Erwin raised a curious brow.

"Moblit already knows everything. I told him the day we arrived. He knows I'm a soiled bride, and he promised he wouldn't tell his father." she explained.

"You _told_ him?" Erwin said, surprised.

"Well, I had to." Hanji said, "I needed to tell somebody, and...um." she blushed and looked down at the floor, "There's one more thing."

Gregor's lip curled, and he muttered the words: "Don't tell me."

"I'm...I'm pregnant with his child. Levi's child." Hanji said quietly.

Erwin stilled, a strange smile slowly spreading across his face, as if he were excited. Gregor turned back to pacing, obviously frustrated and flustered.

"Do you _realize_ what could happen to us? If Cedric finds out about this...you know how he gets when he's angry. He'd take this personally." Gregor said, "Our family needs this wedding, we're barely getting by as it is. Without it-"

"Is that more important than what's best for me?" Hanji said, her tone level and yet laced with a growling bite. Gregor paused, silenced by her words and unsure of how to respond.

"No...it's just-"

"Call it off, Papa." Hanji stood, her stance resolute and determined, "I can't marry his son. You know I cant, for one I am no virgin and secondly I am carrying another man's child! He'll see the reason in that."

"No he will _not!"_ Gregor exclaimed, "You don't understand! You haven't seen what that man is capable of! I have. Multiple times. I'm...I'm _terrified_ for you, Zoë. Do you realize what he might do when he learns that he's been spurned like this? He could hurt you!" he exhaled, "I tried his patience for months making him wait while looking for you, and now that I've found you you're not fit for marrying his son. Do you think he'll just let that slide? How can you be so naive?"

Hanji was struck with how similar he was to the version of her father she remembered in that moment. She furrowed her brows at his tone, her lips set in a thin line, "I am not naive." she murmured icily.

"Well then if not naive you are reckless."

Hanji bristled, opening her mouth to refute him but he held up a hand to silence her, "We cannot breathe a _word_ of this to Cedric." he said with finality, "Promise me you'll keep this to yourself, Zoë. Your safety is paramount over whether or not you want this marriage."

She crossed her arms, holding his gaze with a defiant tilt of her head, "Is it truly my safety you fear for? Or is it the safety of the _family coffers_ at risk?" she asked.

"Zoë..." Gregor shook his head.

"I'll keep my mouth shut. Though whether it's for the right reasons I am quite unsure, Papa. I do hope you can clear it up for me." Hanji turned to stride out of the room.

"Zoë."

It was Erwin's voice, and she paused at the door.

"You said...you're pregnant?"

She looked at him over her shoulder to offer him a sad smile, "Yes."

"Levi would be really happy to hear that." Erwin said.

"You think so? I suppose he would." she said glumly, sparing a glance toward her father as she left.

Erwin was quick to follow her, "You misunderstand me, Zoë." he whispered.

Hanji glanced at him as she walked, "Misunderstand what?"

"Levi is alive." he said, and she came to a rather abrupt halt, her lips parting in disbelief. "He's alive, Zoë."

She gasped, the sound akin to a strangled sob, "He..." she pressed a hand to the nearest wall to support her weight, suddenly dizzy. "Levi is..." she rasped, and Erwin caught her when she stumbled.

"Zoë..." Erwin murmured, concerned.

"I need to lay down." Hanji said, pointing down the hall, "My room is that way."

* * *

Annie had never been one to second-guess her decisions.

She was a resolute rogue, trained to kill and to steal and to retrieve, her mind conditioned to avoid guilt and to simply obey orders. The endgame was more important than who got hurt.

But, quite frankly and quite to her own surprise, she was feeling a twinge of guilt for her trio's latest retrieval. Cedric had sent them after a young woman, apparently Lady Titania, a few years older than she, who had been supposedly kidnapped. In the heat of the moment she was just doing as told, but she could never deny the fact that the young woman's screams of horror left her shaken. She _was_ kidnapped, wasn't she? Why would anyone show such remorse for their captor?

Annie didn't know what to think, and upon explaining her doubts to Bertholdt and Reiner she was shot down by the bulky blonde, while the tallest of them stood in silent contemplation.

"A job is a job, Annie. The technicalities are meaningless. Or are you going soft?"

She had slapped him and then delivered a sharp kick in the balls for good measure, walking away with a huff. If he considered her to be soft he was as dumb as he looked.

As for today, she was able to observe the latter of the woman's conversation with newly-arrived Erwin. Zoë was a strange, tall, admittedly pretty, yet awkward lady. Annie watched as Erwin spoke to her in a hushed tone, his words making her pale and stumble. She had the urge to rush forward and help her to her feet, but the older Lord had that task very much covered. She watched as Zoë pointed to her room and they began to walk in that direction.

She was curious, and so she followed, silent, unseen. She hadn't heard what they were speaking of, but she didn't trust that it was anything she should dismiss. It was a gut feeling, if one wanted to get technical.

* * *

"You're alright?" Erwin let her sink into the soft mattress, and she whimpered as she covered her mouth with a hand.

"Zoë?"

"I-" she wept, and he stood back, letting her have her moment. "I didn't-"

"You thought him dead?" he didn't mean to sound condescending, but she glared at him even as she sobbed, her eyes full of fire despite it. "You have Armin to thank for saving him, granted Grisha did all the work, but he found him soon enough that he pulled through."

Hanji nodded, "I guess I just convinced myself...that he was dead." she quivered, hugging herself. "I thought that would be easier."

Erwin sat beside her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, "I see. It would have been better to think him dead instead of hoping he lived, in case he truly did die. Is that how you saw it?"

She nodded, wiping at her eyes.

"It was smart of you." he said, assuring her by rubbing her arm, "If it were the other way around and he had actually lost his life you would have been truly heartbroken. Either way there was heartache, but you saved yourself more pain than you realize."

She scoffed a laugh, "It doesn't feel like it."

"Of course not." Erwin sighed.

"How is he doing? Being alive is one thing, but is he well? Is he up and about? Did he even wake? Was he asking after me?" she badgered him with her questions.

"Calm down, Zoë. He's fine, awake, recovering, and you were all he ever talked about when I saw him." he placated her, patting her hand as he removed his arm from her shoulder.

Her smile was brilliant, bright and sunny despite her remaining tears. She gazed wistfully at some point in the room he couldn't quite gauge, her eyes shimmering with joy and tears. "I can hardly fathom what to say, but I do know I cannot go through with this marriage if he lives."

"Indeed not."

"And I can't go back without them knowing where I've gone. How can I go back without incurring any one person's wrath? I don't particularly care what my father might think of me returning to Levi, but I do somewhat worry about Cedric's response to this news. I also don't want anyone else to get hurt. Myself especially, not with the baby." she paused to caress her stomach, thoughtful and somber.

"How long?"

She blinked, turning to Erwin in confusion, "Pardon?"

"How long have you known about your pregnancy? And how far along?" Erwin clarified.

"Oh, I found out the day I was brought to your estate. And I'd wager I'm just over two months along, give or take a week." Hanji shrugged, "I'm not entirely sure _when_ it happened, but I do know I stopped taking my moon tea after I moved into Levi's cabin well over two months ago. Sometime afterwards I suppose."

"I didn't need that much clarification." Erwin held up a hand, and then chuckled at her following blush.

"Sorry."

"Zoë-" Erwin stood and began to pace, "There is no way I can think of besides outright confessing your fornication and pregnancy to Cedric that would annul this arrangement legally." he said, "Any other way and people you care about might get hurt, or you might be on the run for the rest of your life."

"Then why shouldn't I go confess right now?" Hanji asked.

"Your father was indeed right about recklessness, we can't be too careful. Cedric is a...ruthless man. He is one of the more foul lords in our country, and he has been known to do unspeakable things to those who cross him. Your father was speaking truth, though I know you fear he speaks it for the wrong reasons."

"I _know_ he preaches that I must keep my mouth shut for the wrong reasons. I know he loves me, but loving me is not why he wants this secret kept so badly. He's a proud man, and he despises poverty. And what with how our house is descending in that regard..." she trailed off momentarily, "This is his money grab and I have just ruined it for him." Hanji said with a huff, crossing her arms, "I should just go tell Cedric."

"Please refrain." Erwin pleaded, "Remember that you are not the only one who spurned him. There is your father, me, Levi, and by extension Levi's family. If you want to keep them safe then you must allow me to come up with a plan of action."

Hanji stared as she thought his words over, and then she nodded, begrudgingly. "Well, there is only so long until the wedding, you'd best get started." she said with a gesture to the door.

"Zoë...Hanji-" Erwin said as he turned to leave, her attention highly piqued by his use of her preferred name, "Leave this to me. Don't do anything rash. I'll have an answer to all of this soon."

"Alright." she said, turning away to bite her lip and ponder.

Erwin walked away, exiting the room and gently shutting the door behind him. He slumped back against the wood with a weary sigh, tired from his ride and from his conversations. He was overwhelmed with a need to sleep on this matter, and so he headed to his room, unaware of the pair of icy blue eyes that watched him leave.

* * *

Did these two not realize that one could hear them if they passed by? They weren't exactly speaking quietly, she heard every word clearly. They had no tact in keeping their secrets safe if they believed a closed door kept anyone from listening. Annie stepped away from the door when she heard Lord Smith's footsteps, hiding in a nearby alcove and trying to still the beating of her heart as she ran their conversation through her mind once again.

The Lady Titania was pregnant? From what she could gather this man they spoke of was the father? And Erwin knew, perhaps her father did too, from the sound of the exchange.

Annie wasn't one for the intricacies of politics and protocol between lords and ladies. All she generally knew was to say _'yes milord'_ and go do as she was told without question. But she did know one thing, marriage required the lady in question to be pure, and by now it was clear that the Lady Titania was in no way a pure bride. She was soiled, ruined, _shamed_ even, in the eyes of the aristocracy. She was in no way fit for Lord Berner's son.

Her first instinct was to go directly to Cedric and explain what she had overheard. But she had been bluntly reminded of his not-so-hidden cruelty by Erwin's words. And quite frankly even she could be disgusted, even she drew a line somewhere. She curled up her lip as she remembered what she had seen happen to a woman who crossed him before. It wouldn't matter if the girl was with child, if anything her treatment might be worse. She grimaced further as she imagined it, Zoë, whatever her faults, did not deserve that fate.

Telling Bertholdt and Reiner would be as good as telling Cedric, the only difference being they'd probably sell the information. And telling the Lady Titania of her knowing was something she was as of yet unsure of doing. Her reasons unknown to even herself.

Annie was confused, utterly confused as to whom to tell.

But she did know one thing, she couldn't tell a soul until she had figured out whose side she was on. And she was wondering whether or not she should even take sides. Yes, feigning ignorance was her play, she decided with a nod, straightening her tunic and strolling down the hall nonchalantly, as if she had not heard a peep.

* * *

Lord Cedric was displeased. Not only were his suspicions raised, his eyes and ears told of Erwin's speaking to Gregor and Zoë in private within the hour of arriving. They themselves seemed wary of the subject matter of these talks. None had any information as to what might have been spoken of, but Cedric deduced well enough that Erwin either was plotting something or he had some hand in the marriage deal with Gregor he had struck. It was bad enough that the Titanias wanted his fortunes, but if Smith was after them too it was all the more a tragedy. He for one simply wanted his line secured and his son wed.

He had also grown suspicious of the Titania daughter. She was a lovely girl, but her behavior as of late drew his doubts about her. The handmaiden he had assigned her was to report any suspicious demeanor. And today she claimed that the lady hadn't been using her linens for her bleed, despite Zoë claiming she was having it at this very moment. It was another reason the wedding was delayed again, they needed proof of consummation after all.

He was beginning to wonder if Gregor, his daughter, and Erwin were playing him for a fool.

His quill snapped in his fingers, drawing him back to the present, and he glanced at his hand with a weary sigh. "Are you certain of this? She hasn't used them? Perhaps she brought her own."

The handmaiden was terrified of him, he could see it, though she held her voice well and only let her hands quiver, "I'm certain, milord. I checked her belongings myself."

"And this means?" he wanted her to explain the implications, wanted to be sure it wasn't just suspicion on his own part.

The handmaiden licked her lips anxiously, "That she is not on her bleed."

"And _why_ would she lie about that?" he asked, pressing his fingers together before his chin, "What reasoning would a young lady have to hide the fact that she's not having her bleeds?" he urged her to explain with a tilt of his head.

"I'm not entirely certain in this case, milord, but one would suspect it to mean she's...with child?"

He nodded, taking a breath to calm his temper, "Thank you, Hannah. You may leave." he gestured toward the door, and the woman scampered away.

Moments after the door had closed he gave a shout of rage and swiped his papers and books from his desk, nary minding the spill of ink across the floor. He stood and paced, mentally developing a method for plucking the truth from the girl. Her father raved about her being pure, untouched, but he was beginning to believe that the man was filling his ears with empty promises. How dare he? How _dare_ the Titania's insult him so?!

He was going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another, and then he was going to punish whatever wrongs had been done against him. Starting with the Lady Titania, if his suspicions proved correct.

* * *

Hanji observed her stomach with a hum, turning from side to side, her abdomen was still flat as a board, not to mention her breasts, though that would change with time, she wagered. It was hard to feel pregnant when one looked so flat. The morning sickness was an avid reminder, granted, but she was only just beginning to feel it at this point.

She ran a hand over the barest sweep of her stomach, wishing it were a different hand, larger, more calloused, and very much more talented than her own, at least when it came to amorous activities. It was still sinking in that Levi lived, that he was recovering from his ordeal and that he was waiting for her to return to him. It made her laugh with the absurdity of wording it that way. It made it seem as though he was the damsel, and she the knight.

There was a sudden knock at the door and she jumped, the gasp involuntary as she called out: "I'm not decent, give me a moment."

There was no answer, but she pulled on her sleeping gown and her robe hastily, breathing heavy by the time she removed the bolt from the door.

"Moblit! Hello." she smiled awkwardly, unsure of what to say to him now.

"Zoë, my...my father would like for you to join him in his solar." he said hesitantly.

Hanji blinked, surprised, "His... _solar?_ Why would he want me to visit him there?"

Moblit seemed nervous, "I'm not sure, and to be honest I'm worried. What if he had someone overhear our conversation in the garden?"

Hanji gulped, wondering if that might have been the case during her talk with her father and Erwin. "We don't know that, for all we know he's just after a friendly chat." she said with an uncertain smile, one she hoped reassured Moblit. "I'll be there soon, I need to dress first." she courteously closed the door, pressing a hand to her chest as all the possibilities went through her mind and her blood ran cold in apprehension.

What did he want to see her for? What did he want from her? Did he know? What if he _did_ know? _Was_ he as ruthless and her father and Erwin claimed?

She had no answers, and she knew it was of no use to worry herself more than absolutely necessary. She moved to dress in something she wouldn't need her handmaiden for, determined to be the air of calm and collectivism in his presence. No use giving him a reason to suspect her of anything if he didn't already.

She pulled a royal blue gown over her head, a simple one with a thick skirt and no need for a corset. She turned to look in the mirror while tucking her hair into as much of an updo as she could managed with the locks by herself. She paused at that, realizing just how long it had been since she left, for her hair to have grown so long since then. It nearly reached her waist now, and was returning to its natural state of loose curls toward the ends.

She stuck a pin into the messy, albeit lovely bun to keep it in place, straightened her dress, and slipped into some casual shoes to match before she began her walk to Lord Berner's solar. The five minute walk felt like it took centuries, and she dreaded opening that door more than she had dread anything in her life. Upon reaching the dark wood she raised a hand to knock, gulping and hesitant. What would happen when she crossed the threshold of his solar, she did not know, and now that she was here she was legitimately terrified.

Her heart hammered in her chest, and once more she placed her hand over her womb protectively, making a silent vow to her child that she wasn't going to let anything happen to him or her. And then she knocked.

"Come in."

She opened the door, stepping inside and giving a respectful nod, along with the slightest of bows.

"Close the door, Lady Zoë." Cedric was lounging in his chair, looking for all the temperaments she had imagined to be very stoic.

She did as she was told, threading her fingers together before her and waiting for his next order. Despite being on the same level of nobility as he, she was a woman, and generally in their culture a man had more influence and more power. A fact that begrudged her immensely, but alas, she needed to play her part well.

"Do sit, I don't intend to make you stand there while I speak with you. That would be _inconsiderate_." he said, tacking on a rather biting tone at the last word.

She hesitated, only briefly enough for him to observe that she had noticed his jab. Whether or not she understood it, she hoped he did not know. But she was starting to feel her suspicions were correct. That he knew what she had been keeping from him.

She sat down, her heart racing faster and her breath quick enough to be considered nervous by him.

"Do I frighten you, my lady?" he asked with a strange smirk that had the hairs of her nape standing on end.

"No." she replied, proud that her tone kept steady.

"Hmm." he raised a brow, "Why then are you so nervous, if it would seem I am not one to be afraid of?"

"I'm not nervous." she retorted.

"You shake as though you're out in a blizzard, dear girl. And your pulse is so pronounced I can see it upon your neck. Not to mention the sweat. If you wanted to hide anything from me, Zoë, you should have worked on your skills in subtlety beforehand." his smirk widened as she grew more breathless.

"I'm not h-hiding anything." she cursed herself for the quiver in her voice.

He stood, circling his desk and sitting upon the corner, "Most convincing." she frowned at his sarcasm, "Pray tell, and forgive my bluntness as well as my invasion of privacy, but you have not been using your linens. Care to explain?"

She felt her blood go cold yet again, and this time stay that way. From the quirk of his brow she could tell she had gone pale as a ghost. "That _is_ a rather invasive question, my lord." she said in a quaking voice. "What makes you think that I am not using them? And, for that matter, what business is it of yours?"

His lip quirked upward, "I ask again, why aren't you using them?"

She gave him an icy glare at his persistence, "I have my own."

"Ahh..." he waved his finger and gave a tut or two, chuckling softly. "That's where you are wrong, my dear." he stood and turned to the window, "Did you really think I would buy that lie? That I didn't know everything that goes on in my castle?" he asked, his voice far too cheery for the subject matter. And Hanji was beginning to panic, her guise having been so easily shredded by so few words.

"I-"

"Are you a virgin, my dear? And do not lie, you only endanger yourself and your father by lying." he said, the threat clear despite his tone.

"I...am..." she gulped.

"You _are?"_ he turned to fix her with a fierce glare.

In that moment she felt as if a second was forever, and in that eternity she contemplated what might happen if she lied or she told the truth. His seconds-old threat of her father as well as herself was pressing on her mind. If anything happened to her it might also happen to the baby. But what if she told the truth and it happened anyway? Though he had said it would be worse if she lied, and from his expression she knew that he already knew the right answer. What use was it to try and fool someone who already knew the truth?

"Not." she finished, "I'm not." she held her breath for his response.

The silence was unbearable, and then he smiled, laughing with what couldn't be deciphered as either glee or anger. It almost sounded hysterical. Her eyes began to sting with tears that she desperately tried to blink away. If she thought she was afraid before...

"Honesty." he said, nodding, "Good. But will it continue, I wonder?" he turned on his heel and sighed, "Are you with child?"

In the back of her mind she felt a droplet slide down her cheek and splash against her collarbone, though she was a bit preoccupied to care. She gave him a meaningful stare, and he saw her answer in her eyes.

"Hmm. And is your father aware?"

"No. I haven't told him yet." she said without hesitation, hoping he would buy into the lie.

"Well, there's no way to tell if that's a lie or not, I guess I'll bring him in. We'll ask him, shall we?" he said with a strange glee that set her nerves on edge.

 _'Just who the fuck is this man and where did Cedric go?'_ she thought to herself. She had grown up with this man's son. She thought she knew who he was from what Moblit said. Obviously her mental image was rather far from the truth. She was starting to feel claustrophobic, as if the walls were closing in on her and he was working her into a trap of her own making. Was that so far from the truth?

He leaned back into her line of vision, and she realized with a start that she'd been slightly phased out by her own thoughts. "Shall I send for him?"

"If you wish to, he'd only tell you he was unaware." she said, hoping he was fooled by her nonchalance. "Wouldn't it be better - if he were unaware - that he remained so?" she asked in passing, almost as if speaking to herself rather than him.

He raised a brow, "Perhaps. Though that doesn't change the fact that you are a soiled, and may I add pregnant, bride." he pushed off from where he had leant against the desk and approached her chair. She shrunk back in her seat and gulped. "A bastard whelp." he added with a sneer as he stared at her flat stomach, and her brows knit together in fury at the comment, "Just how many men have you been with, then? How many have you spread your legs for? A whore pretending at being a highborn is all you are now."

She abruptly stood and slapped him across the face, as much a mistake it was, she could only take so many jabs against her honor. "How _dare_ you." she seethed, only to yelp as he grabbed her by the hair and brought her in uncomfortably close.

"How dare _you_." he hissed, and she made to punch him. He brought a leg up to knee her in the stomach, and she abandoned her offense in favor of curling up to avoid him. Anything to protect her child. "You've made this far worse than it needs to be." he said, using his grip on her hair to force her to the floor. She fell without grace upon her knees, grunting and clutching her stomach protectively.

"What do you _want_ from me?" she muttered between grit teeth.

"I'm not yet sure, though I do know I don't want this marriage to happen anymore. Unless, of course..." he trailed off and tilted his head to the side as he glanced down at her stomach. The action sent a shiver of fear down her spine. "As of now this engagement is forfeit. And as for you and your father, such a transgression cannot go unpunished."

Her eyes went wide at the implication. "But my father doesn't know about it."

"So you say." Cedric released his grip on her hair roughly enough to make her gasp. "Nonetheless, your house has insulted mine, whether he knows it or not. And I wager he wouldn't take kindly to your impending fate. He'd draw up a force against me in retaliation, not that he would succeed, but it would be a hassle I am not willing to undergo." he said, "I do not plan to let any members of your house escape my wrath."

She gaped up at him, inching away on the floor. "You're insane!" she exclaimed.

"There's a great difference between madness and protecting one's honor. I do have a reputation to uphold. And your scheme was rather close to making me a laughingstock." he turned on his heel to open the door, "Luckily I caught on in time. I'm no fool, that's the biggest insult against me of all, dear Zoë. You thought you could fool _me_."

He took a couple steps outside the solar, and she felt the slightest glimmer of hope that he might be leaving her there.

A glimmer that was dashed away a second later.

"Take her to the main hall, find her father...and...find Lord Smith, I need a word with him as well."

"What are you doing?" Hanji gasped as she was hauled to her feet.

"Only what is my right." Cedric waved a hand and his guard began to drag her out of the solar.

Hanji's breath began to quicken almost to the point of hyperventilation, she was terrified and anxious and unsure of what was to come.

 _'What do I do?'_

 _'What have I done?'_

She was pushed to her hands and knees against the carpet in the main hall, the guard who handled her seemed unperturbed by her icy glare. She shuffled and sat down properly on the floor, clutching her arm and waiting with shaking limbs until her father was led into the hall similarly. He was pushed down beside her, and she gulped at his questioning gaze.

Cedric entered, followed closely by a most confused Erwin. He strode before them and clapped his hands together with a smile, "Shall we begin?"

* * *

 **Next chapter is gonna be rough. I'm more than a little afraid to write it. But rest assured there is a purpose in the grand design of the plot for everything that happens.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Ayyy!**

 **Long time no see? Man it's been a while. I've been very busy the past few months, I went to Idaho back in early November for thanksgiving and stayed there well into December. And since getting home there's been Christmas, plumbing issues with the house I'm staying at, art commissions, _and_ I'm getting prepped to go to college. Lots of work and hardly any time to write. That said, this chapter is so short for such a long wait but it's ready to post. I feel really bad that it's not longer, and I feel extra terrible for leaving it on that cliffhanger for that long. **

**I have a fair few months before I'll be moving for college so I should be able to get a few chapters out pretty quickly. Gosh I hope so, this story is coming up on 3 years old and I thought I'd have it finished in a year. Things never go as planned, am I right?**

 **Anywho, enjoy the chapter. It's got a bit darker of a tone, this one and the next few chapters might.**

* * *

A quick glance at her father was all Hanji could afford, her eyes begging and pleading for him to understand what she needed. She needed him to somehow play along with her story, if she weren't taken so off guard by what had just happened then she could have been more careful with her lie. If Cedric found out that she did indeed lie...well, she had no idea what would happen to him.

Gregor, to his credit, seemed unnaturally calm, though his anxiety was clear by the sweat on his brow and the bob of his throat as he gulped.

Both she and her father gave a start as Cedric clapped his hands together and spoke, "Shall we begin?"

A chill ran down her spine, though she was determined not to let anything show on her face. She would not give in to his intimidation, at least as long as her child remained safe.

"Let us get down to business." Cedric approached casually, his hands clasped behind his back and his gaze landing upon her father. "Gregor, I hate to see you like that, do stand." he beckoned him with his hand, and Gregor hesitantly did as he was bid, getting to his feet and raising his head in a display of confidence.

"I'm sure you have questions. Why am I causing such a ruckus? Why is your daughter on her knees? All will be answered in a moment." Cedric stepped up before her father, and Hanji noted with a twinge of satisfaction that her father was taller than him. "Firstly, were you aware of your daughter's... _impurity?"_ he asked, his voice taking on a dangerous edge.

Hanji looked to her father desperately, mentally willing him to lie.

Gregor gave an impressive display of shock, his lips parting and his gaze flickering towards her form kneeling so morosely on the floor. "I...no...I didn't." his anxiety translated into a rather convincing breathlessness that almost had _Hanji_ convinced he was honest.

Cedric pursed his lips, glancing toward her with a hum. "Indeed, she even carries a bastard, proof of her fornication." he added, turning on his heel to offer his son a brief look.

To his credit, Moblit looked horrified, though not for the reasons Cedric may believe. Hanji barely repressed a sigh of relief as Cedric began to walk away from them. "I suppose that might clear you from any suspicions, Smith." he said as he approached the far end of the room, standing with his hands yet again clasped behind his back.

"Suspicions?" Erwin echoed carefully.

"You need not concern yourself now." Cedric waved his hand dismissively. "As for the lovely Zoë..." he turn again to fix the girl in question with an icy glare, "What to do with you? Hmm?"

To this question Hanji raised her chin and stared back defiantly.

He approached her with a hand on his chin, calculating. She straightened her back, waiting a fair amount of time for something to happen, and he finally closed his eyes with a hum.

"Bring him."

Hanji blinked, registering a second too late that he was referring to her father. She watched as he was grabbed by two of Cedric's guards, and she got to her feet in an outrage.

"What are you doing? It was _me_ who spurned you, not him!" she exclaimed.

Cedric turned to her with a gesture, and she was restrained by another two or three men. "And didn't I already tell you that doesn't exclude him from the consequences?" he asked with a tilt of his head, "Remember, even _if_ you were the sole perpetrator it's your family name that bears the weight of your actions. And thus, your family in its entirety is subject to my wrath."

Hanji bared her teeth in a snarl, "I don't give a _fuck_ about your bloated ego! Let my father go. I'm prepared to face your so-called wrath, I haven't said otherwise. Just leave him out of it!"

Her father managed to look astonished over her foul mouth even amidst their situation.

Cedric raised a brow, "You're not helping yourself by insulting me further." he gestured again for them to bring her father, and when she saw his hand reaching for his sword she panicked. She bucked and kicked and twisted her hand out of the grip of the man holding her, whirling to elbow him in the face, as Levi taught her. The other two men were rather slow to react, having not expected her retaliation, and she made to run towards the prick, ready to show him a piece of her mind.

And she might have if it weren't for the white hot pain that ripped across the length of her face. It sent her tripping over her damned dress and sprawling on the floor while she gasped through the pain. She couldn't open her left eye, it was stinging and throbbing. A shaky hand reached up to her face to assess the damage, feeling the jagged gash that ran from above her brow to the mid-curve of her cheek. Pulling her fingers back confirmed that she was bleeding, though not profusely. It was definitely deep enough to scar, though.

She moved to sit up, cupping her injury with her palm and glaring at Cedric. The burly man now standing beside him wore a large, impractical ring. She figured it must have scraped through her skin and the surface of her stinging eye when he punched her. With a grunt, she pulled herself to her feet, stumbling a bit due to the head trauma.

Cedric pursed his lips and gave her a look of awe, "Impressive of you to stand after such a hit." he said.

"Leave my father _alone_." she said, proud of herself for not letting her voice quaver.

He scoffed a chuckle, and she scowled at him, removing her hand from her eye and taking a step forward. "If you insist." he nodded, and she shied away from the new man who aimed a kick at her stomach. Which instead clipped her side and made her double over and fall to her knees.

"I guess we'll just start with you."

"You bastard." Hanji hissed, trying to get to her feet. "Do you take pride in beating a pregnant woman? Oh so _mighty_." she drawled sarcastically, "And letting your goons do it for you. You don't even have the balls to do it yourself, _coward_." she spat at him, though the glob of saliva only fell to the ground at his feet.

She could see his fists clench with her good eye, and she smiled ruefully as he approached her again.

"You are too bold for your own good." he growled at her, and she fell to the ground completely when he delivered a sharp kick to her side. She wrapped her knees and her arms around her abdomen to protect it as she laid on her side and weathered his next blows. She lost count of how many he landed on her before his hand was grasping the collar of her dress and dragging her up so he could deliver a fist to the injured side of her face.

She couldn't help but give a yelp at that, the sting in her eye renewing itself to almost unbearable levels.

But she would take it, as long as no one besides herself was hurt. She would protect her father. At least long enough to find a way out of the mess she had made.

"Cedric enough! It's a pregnant girl for heaven's sake!"

Erwin's voice reached her ears, and she realized he had been calling for Cedric to stop the whole time. She inhaled sharply, her voice cracking on her next cry when she was pulled up further by her hair.

"You're soft, Erwin. This girl and the bastard she carries mean nothing to me."

"I am speaking in your favor, Cedric. I'm sure there are hardly any _other_ pregnant women who mean to spurn you. What does it matter if just one person is spared punishment? Take your rage out on someone else. This impedes your honor and only serves to harm your reputation." Erwin continued. "People would likely lose respect for you rather than the opposite."

Cedric's grip on her hair loosened, and she huddled into a protective ball on the floor, her hand clutching at her swelling eye and her breath leaving her in harsh gasps. One of his kicks definitely cracked a rib, her lungs ached and stung with every breath she took.

Erwin and Cedric were arguing back and forth, but her attention was on her father, observing his horror and realizing that he had been clocked in the face at least once. His jaw was purplish and swelling just as her eye was. He was being restrained tightly by three men, and still he struggled, holding her eye all the while.

She gasped in pain when she was hauled to her feet, and it was all she could do to stay conscious at this point.

* * *

"I'm done for today."

She watched as they hauled the poor girl and her father off to some dank cell to recover for the night. She'd seen this before, many times. It was always minimal, a short, precise beating and then a night to recover. She would be fed and given water, and then she would be back in the morning to receive the same treatment. Just enough to stay alive for as long as she was entertaining. And being a woman was far worse, as she had more... _uses..._ than a man.

A scenario Annie had already seen once or twice before...

She turned away in revulsion.

After the conversation she overheard and what she witnessed while she did her last job, for the first time in her life she felt guilty. This shouldn't have been happening to that young woman, especially not while she was with child. It was unethical...

Okay, maybe she wasn't really the right person to make judgements on a person's ethics. But this was a blatant step over the line for her. And she didn't want to be a part of it.

She walked away to leave the aftermath to anyone else willing to deal with it. _She_ sure as hell wasn't.

"Annie?"

She halted and took a moment to rub the bridge of her nose in irritation, "What, Bertholdt?" she snapped.

"Where are you going?"

She turned to face him with a scowl, "Away from this bullshit."

He seemed confused, crossing his arms and glancing to the side. "What bullshit?"

"Oh _come on!_ Are you blind? Did you not see what just happened in there?" she stalked over to him and pointed a finger in the direction of the main hall, hissing a whisper in his face. Or as close to his face as she could get, God he was tall. "I know we've seen and done a lot of fucked up shit but _that-"_ she poked him in the chest and he stumbled slightly, "That is too much. The woman is _pregnant_ for fuck's sake!"

Bertholdt had the decency to look cowed.

"And frankly, I agree with everything she said. He's a coward for thinking that beating a woman in her condition somehow makes him seem strong. His ego is too big for him and I wish I could stomp on it myself." she said, "And you know what happens next, that girl is going to go through hell because she didn't comply with some pre-ordained plan for her life that she probably never even knew about!"

Annie took a step back and pressed a hand to her forehead, gritting her teeth and murmuring, "Why didn't we ever stop it before? Why am I only realizing this now?"

She paused to think about that, "God, I'm disgusted with myself." she snarled.

With that she turned to leave.

"So what are you going to do?"

She didn't stop walking, but she did answer.

"The right thing."

* * *

Hanji hissed as she was dropped unceremoniously on the damp, stone floor. And she lay there for a moment to collect herself. The cell she was in was quiet, the drip of water echoing from somewhere indiscernible. It had a wooden cantilever bed on one wall, and a high set window to let the light in. At least she could tell the time of day.

"Fucking _hell._.."

Running the day's events through her head on a loop, she could not think of a better set of words to describe it and how she was feeling at that very moment.

One thing was for sure, her eye felt like someone was driving a needle through it and she had the worst headache in the history of headaches. Not to mention her broken rib.

Perhaps she should have been more discreet...

Actually, no, she was plenty discreet.

What the hell kind of creep _was_ Lord Cedric Berner? He found out about everything because he had someone monitoring her _menstruation habits?_ Of all things...

"What the ever-loving fuck?" she muttered to herself, hoisting her quivering body up enough so that she might sit straight.

 _'Ow.'_

Okay, she would just sit up then, apparently to straighten her back would be to strain her rib.

She jolted as she remembered something, and she placed an anxious hand over her lower belly. It was too early to feel it move, but she could tell that she was in the clear. She took a deep breath and sagged in relief, the slightest smile gracing her bloodied lips as she considered that at the very least, her baby was still safe.

But for how long?

Her face fell into a frown. She risked _everything_ pulling Cedric's attention off of her father. _'Why would I do that?'_ she asked herself. She shouldn't have cared what happened to him. She should have put her child first. Shouldn't she?

For all the things she told herself, the best conclusion was that she didn't actually hate him. She blamed him, she was angry at him, she resented his choices...but no. Despite how much she had tried to make it so, she could never hate him. Funny how that worked. Though at least she didn't have to feel that weird guilt when she thought about him anymore.

"Zoë!"

She turned at the sound of his voice, watching as they tossed him in the cell adjacent to hers. At least he could land on his feet.

He rushed to the bars, his brow furrowed in concern, and she offered him a pained, lopsided grin.

"Hey, Papa."

"What the hell were you _thinking_?!"

"So much for gratitude." she scoffed.

He rolled his eyes and held his arm out so she might take his hand, which she did. "I could have endured some torment. By God, you don't need to take everything upon yourself! Think of your child."

"My baby is fine." she murmured.

"For now." Gregor reminded.

Hanji winced at the reminder and shifted closer, "Yeah."

"Your eye is pretty bad. If it doesn't get cleaned out it could get infected." he said, using their newfound proximity to gingerly touch her bruised cheek.

She scoffed, "I doubt that will happen. I don't think my health is high on Cedric's list."

Gregor's frown deepened, "Why did you tell him?"

She laughed at that, a brief, choking bark of a laugh that had her clutching her side, hissing in pain and muttering: "Fuck." as her ribs throbbed. "I didn't _tell_ him, goddamnit. He found out." she breathed through grit teeth.

"You...curse a lot now."

"Really, Papa?" she turned to him incredulously, "We're facing torture and death and you're worried about my language?"

"Sorry. It's just...shocking." Gregor apologized, gripping her shoulder when she wobbled precariously, "How did he find out?"

"I don't know, a maid? According to him, he had every little thing I did monitored. Freak that he is, he apparently kept watch over my-" she cleared her throat, "-feminine habits." she finished with a blush and a frown.

Gregor's eyes widened, "That son of a bitch!" he said in a growl.

Hanji smirked at him, "Now who's cursing?" she chuckled carefully so as not to jostle her rib.

"It's not even that. It's the fact that he's so paranoid he didn't take me at my word. I've been his trusted partner for ages." Gregor slumped with a sigh. "Granted his suspicions were correct, it is still hard to hear that he doubted me so easily."

Hanji shrugged, "Like I said, he's a freak." she summarized.

Gregor nodded, and then his eyes widened as he seemed to have a sudden revelation. He turned to her, his lips parting and his eyes saddened, "Zoë," he said in a small voice, "You're...he will...you're a woman."

She stared at him for a moment, and then she rolled her eyes, "No! _Really?"_ she drawled sarcastically.

"Zoë, this is serious." Gregor reprimanded, "You do realize that a beating isn't the only thing he can dole out?"

She sobered immediately at that, gulping and shuffling her body as much as she could without pain. "Yeah." she murmured. The notion left her stomach queasy and her heart pounding. Before her broken rib she might have been able to defend against that, but now...

The thought of someone besides Levi touching her in any way intimate made her skin crawl, and she pulled her knees up to her chest to comfort herself. Her father's hand on her shoulder tightened just enough to be _slightly_ reassuring.

"Whatever happens next, let me take the brunt of it. I can't stand to see what happened today happen again. Much less anything more." he said.

Hanji hung her head a little lower. "You would be paying for my...my actions."

She wouldn't dare to call her choice a mistake, not when Levi, his family, and the baby came out of it.

"No, I would be protecting you." he corrected sternly.

She lifted her head to stare at him, her face devoid of emotion for a time, and then looked back down at the floor in contemplation. Her good eye watered, but her pride would not allow any tears. She never thought she would hear him say something like that, and that she would believe every word...

It felt nice.

"Thank you, Papa." she said, covering his hand with her own. "I'll try not to antagonize Cedric. If that's at all possible, I would be lying if I thought it would help in the long run."

"We'll find a way out of this, Zoë." he assured.

"Somehow I'm not optimistic." she sighed. "Though if I had a little outside help I'm sure I could think of something." she thought of Erwin, no doubt the man was just as eager for them to find a way out of their situation as she was.

She absentmindedly and gingerly reached a hand up to her eye and hissed as she managed to touch the jagged wound across her forehead. "This is going to scar." she mumbled as she tried to carefully map it with her fingers.

"It could be worse, though I wish we could at least clean it. I also worry for your eye, you could lose it entirely." Gregor gently turned her chin so he could look at it again.

She shrugged, "Well I'm already pretty blind in either eye, what's it to lose one?"

He tilted his head, perplexed, "What?"

"I ended up getting spectacles while I was gone. All that reading I did by candlelight in my bedroom...you always told me it would ruin my eyesight." she explained with another shrug.

"Oh." he nodded, and then frowned somberly, "Don't downplay it, Zoë. You could get sick, and that's not even the worst possibility."

She could only nod in response.

* * *

Erwin was in his chambers, staring out the window thoughtfully and thinking back on his promise to Levi. It was a promise made during an emotional moment, a means of assuring one of his oldest friends. It wasn't a promise he could easily keep, and at this point he feared he might not be keeping it with how things were going. They needed to get Zoë out of this place as soon as possible, but first he was going to ensure that this wouldn't happen again.

Erwin had a habit of being rash, but for all his deeds he couldn't hold a candle to Cedric.

That man was a stain upon the face of their noble standings. Many of the other great lords of the land were growing tired of him. Including Erwin. And while his main goal had initially been to save Zoë, as he told Levi, he had another reason for his vehemency over the matter. The way he saw it, he would be killing two birds with one stone by saving Zoë from her fate. He supposed he had more than enough merit to label Cedric as insane at this point. There was no question, the man needed to go down.

And thankfully he had the right friends in the right places, the only thing left to do was to let them know that he needed them.

He hadn't come alone, it wouldn't have been smart to. He needed his assets close and reachable, this estate was at least a week's journey from every other estate, and he didn't have that long. And so, he scribbled his instructions on a slip of paper and made his way outside to the coop where the ravens would be kept. He had brought his own, of course, any Lord would bring ravens so that they might send messages back home or specific places that their host's ravens might not be trained to fly to.

He released the raven from its cage and it didn't make a sound - part of its training - as he fastened the scroll of paper to its leg and stroked its feathers soothingly. The bird knew where to go, and it flapped its wings anxiously in its anticipation to fly. However, with the day's events, this particular raven couldn't afford to be seen flying from the coop, lest Cedric or anyone serving him become suspicious. And so he took it a ways out of the sight of night patrols before he released it, practically outside the gates.

The bird flew off, still silent, and he watched it fly for a time before he turned to enter the castle once again. It was up to them now, he could only pray they would be successful.

He didn't notice the figure that had followed him, and now watched him in consideration.

* * *

It was a calm night, the wind was a mere whisper in the trees and the moon was unobscured by clouds. The snow had receded to the mountains in the distance, making for a lovely view. The stars glittered in the distance and only accentuated the quiet beauty of the night.

 _'Zoë would like it.'_

Levi could imagine her curled up with a book on the porch, she'd have probably made him sit and listen while she read. Not that he ever minded when she did so, but he would probably act begrudged all the same.

Funny how little things like that seemed so special now that she wasn't here.

He winced as he shifted, pressing a hand to his healing - but still angry - wound and breathing through the flash of pain. He wasn't supposed to be out of bed, let alone outside, but he couldn't stand to be on bed rest any longer. He needed to move around, and he needed to occupy his mind with something other than worrying for her and staring at the ceiling. It was exhausting and he didn't quite understand how a stomach wound could affect him so much, but he sat down with heaving breath and an aching abdomen on the porch and sighed. He'd walked as far as he dared. Not far in the slightest, but at least it was something.

The flower beds were just starting to bud, and it filled his chest with an ache far worse than physical when he looked at them. Zoë had planted them herself, and she was so excited to see them grow. When they first popped up from the soil she was like a child in her mannerisms. He smiled faintly at the memory, despite the sorrowful longing in his chest. Seeing her smile had become to him what whiskey was to a drunkard. Not quite a crutch but an escape from the real world. Indeed, it never felt real when they were together. He always wondered if he deserved her.

He brushed his hair back from his face and frowned at the feeling of new hair where he usually kept it shorn. Though that was nothing compared to his face, he was sporting a short beard and he didn't like it. He really needed to find his blade, and a mirror. With the constant bedrest he had no time - and far less energy - to even care about facial hair, three weeks took their toll in that regard.

One more glance at the flower beds and he noticed a small flower already out of its bud, the sight made his heart sink.

He hadn't heard from Erwin in a while, he had been here little more than a week before, and he had promised to get Zoë back. He could only hope he was making progress. Nonetheless...tonight he left the house for another reason.

He was feeling a deep sense of foreboding. And he knew, somehow, that is was because Zoë was in trouble. He had never believed in superstitions or any sort of god, but he couldn't help feeling it regardless. And so he had offered up an awkward prayer to whatever god might be listening that she would be alright, wherever she was.

"You're not supposed to be out of bed."

He looked at Isabel and shrugged, "I needed fresh air." he said, and she gave him a knowing look as she sat beside him. Shuffling closer, she reached up and teased a finger through his facial hair with a snicker. He smacked at her hand good-naturedly.

"Looks good on you." she said, leaning back on her hands with a smirk.

"I don't like it."

"Make sure Hanji sees it before you get rid of it. She might like it and then you'll be forced to keep it." she chuckled, though her smile soon fell at the mention of Hanji, and she glanced at the ground. "You're thinking about her, aren't you?"

He cast his gaze down and turned his head away, clutching his wound as it glaringly reminded him of its presence.

"I am too." she said, leaning forward to see around his mussed hair, he didn't want her to see how he was feeling, but she managed to anyway. "You're allowed to miss her, you know. She's coming back, there's no doubt, but you don't need to try and hide how much it's upset you."

He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. Yes, he was very much upset by Zoë's kidnapping, he made that clear when he woke up. He had been very tight lipped afterwards, though, as if suppressing his feelings could make them go away while he waited for her to come back. Not being able to go find her himself was not only irritating, it made him anxious beyond belief.

"It's just hard. And it's frustrating not being able to do anything." he sighed, "I can't stand just sitting here and waiting, not knowing what she is doing right this very moment. It's torturous." he murmured.

Isabel nodded, "I may not know how you feel, but I can imagine." her face took on a scowl, "If someone had taken Farlan from me..." she trailed off to let that statement speak for itself, giving him a pointed look, and he almost smirked at the implication. He deeply pitied the imaginary fool who dared to cross Isabel. He could picture the carnage quite clearly. "Granted, I wish I could have gone with Erwin. I'd love to do the same to Hanji's kidnappers." she said in a snarl.

Levi had been surprised when Erwin asked that they not interfere. His reasons were his own, but he could wager it was because he didn't want anyone else getting hurt that didn't have to.

Though that was only a guess.

"Since when have you listened to what Erwin says?" he prodded. "The Isabel I know would have loaded up her horse and chased after him regardless."

Isabel stared at him blankly.

"Did it not cross your mind?"

She gave a shrug and chuckled as she scratched the back of her neck, "Well no, it did, I just figured he had a good reason for asking us to stay behind. And I wanted to be around for Mikasa and Eren...and you." she paused and looked at the sky solemnly, "I kind of had to choose between being there for you guys and getting some sort of revenge that isn't necessarily mine to take. As much as I wish I was with him, helping Hanji, I still feel like I made a mature choice."

Levi placed his hand on her shoulder and smiled, "Yeah, I guess you did."

She smiled at him.

"That's rare." he added with a smirk, and she smacked him gently.

"You're one to talk, did you sneak past Armin to get out here? That's pretty immature."

Levi scoffed and leaned his elbows on his knees gingerly, "I didn't _sneak_ , he was asleep, so I walked out."

Isabel laughed, "Still, you should probably get back to bed, you're not going to heal any faster by jostling it." she poked him in the side, nowhere near his wound, but it still made him cringe.

"And you're not helping by jabbing me like that." he scowled.

"Oh please, I _barely_ touched you." she stood and offered him a hand, frowning when he gasped aloud upon standing. Isabel frowned and lifted his shirt despite his indignant protest.

"I haven't had a proper bath in weeks." he said.

"Do I look like I care?" she looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. He rolled his eyes and she smirked in triumph as she studied his bandages. A fresh - but small - seam of blood had made its way through the pristine linen. "Shit, you're going to tear the stitches at this rate." she said as she let his shirt drop back down.

"It didn't hurt that much when I came out here." he defended, leaning heavily against her while they walked inside.

"That's because you had been in bed... _resting_." she enunciated the word accusingly, and he only turned his head away and scowled. "Now you've irritated it, maybe even torn it." she added, aiding him in sitting down on the mattress.

He exhaled sharply and reached for the whiskey he had been keeping on the nightstand for the pain.

"Don't take too much." Isabel said as she rummaged through the drawers for bandages and coming back up with both that and a second blanket. It was a colder night than usual, and she no doubt felt he might need an extra one in case.

"I'm not a bloody teenager." Levi said as he took a sip, most definitely not in the mood for a deep swig and a coughing fit.

"I know you're not." Isabel put the blanket on the edge of the bed and approached him with a sympathetic smile as she gestured for him to remove his shirt. He gingerly lifted it, and she helped him pull it off before she began unraveling his bandages. She took the whiskey from him and soaked a swatch of clean linen in it. He held still while she pressed it to his bared wound, but it stung like a bitch, and he inhaled sharply through his teeth, body tensing.

 _"Fuck."_ he hissed.

"Sorry." Isabel murmured as she wiped away the fresh blood and pressed a new wad of dry linen to the wound before wrapping it in bandages again. "No more sneaking out of bed." she held up a hand when he tried to protest, "I don't care _what_ you say, it's still sneaking. You need a few more days at the very least before you start walking around." she said sternly. "It's not completely closed yet and you're just making it worse."

She bundled up the dirtied cloth and tossed it out of the room while she rinsed her hands in the basin.

Then she turned and approached him with a sigh, cupping his cheek with one hand. He stared up at her when she tilted his head up and brushed his hair out of his face. "Don't worry," she said as she leaned down to plant a kiss on his forehead. "Hanji will be back before you know it, big brother." she said in a murmur. "She'll be fine, and you'll be fine."

He only stared at her, nodding and gulping down the swell of emotion that came with her words. "Yeah."

She smiled, swiping a persistent lock of hair away from his forehead once more before she leaned down to hug him gently. "Love you. Rest up, you hear?" Isabel said as she released his face and sauntered away.

He closed his eyes with a sigh, almost laughing when he heard a thump, an indignant, sleepy exclamation, and the sound of Isabel ordering Armin to keep a better eye on his charge.

Yes, Zoë would be back soon...

He hoped.

* * *

"What does it say?"

The man turned his head from the raven perched upon his arm and gave the shorter woman a pointed look while he handed her the small message.

She took it from him and read it swiftly, giving a sigh and a nod. "If he thought there would be any other option then we wouldn't be here." she moved over to her horse and pulled a bag from its back, loading up the various leather straps she wore with throwing knives and her many sheathes with daggers. "It's going to be messy." she noted as she looked over her shoulder.

He gave a nod, giving his own blades a once-over with the whetstone before he sheathed them.

"Remember, Mike, we do this quietly, no traces, no witnesses."

He gave her a nod, "In the morning, then?"

"That's what he said." she stood and turned to face the castle in the distance. "Plenty of time to infiltrate."

"Well then, what are we waiting for?" he asked, trying to keep up the banter.

"We're waiting for your ass to saddle up." she came up beside him on her own horse, close enough to nearly bowl him over.

" _Geez_ , Naba!"

"Get on the horse!" she called back as she galloped off.

* * *

 **A.N.  
Hnnnng! I am so close to getting done with this story. Damn my procrastination, I will triumph and finish it this year! I swear it by the old gods and the new!**

 **Lol.**

 **Seriously, I am going to be writing as much as I can, you guys. I promise I am going to finish this story within the year. Till next chapter, y'all.**


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